Robotic assisted mitral valve surgery

Robotic mitral valve (MV) repair is now routinely and safely performed for complete anatomic correction of all categories of MV leaflet prolapse, regardless of complexity. Robotic repair can be undertaken with or without concomitant tricuspid valve repair and atrial fibrillation ablation procedures, or even mitral valve replacement. The approach can been used to excise benign tumors from the mitral valve or left atrium. Compared with conventional sternotomy, this procedure offers patients the advantages of reduced blood loss, lower risk of incisional infection and atrial fibrillation, shorter hospital length of stay, quicker return to normal activities, and a superior cosmetic result. Midterm quality outcomes after robotic MV repair are excellent, and thus the procedure may be particularly appealing in asymptomatic patients with preserved LV function undergoing correction of severe MR according to ACC/AHA class IIa Guideline recommendations to optimize long-term survival and decrease late heart failure risk.