Cardiovascular surgery in southwest Virginia

When your heart, veins or arteries need surgery, trust the cardiovascular experts at LewisGale Regional Health System. Our cardiothoracic surgical team has performed thousands of successful heart surgeries and is trained in the most advanced surgical procedures available, including vascular surgery.

To learn more about the heart and vascular services offered through LewisGale Regional Health System, call our Consult-A-Nurse® team at (877) 242-2362.

You can rely on the integrated heart care services of LewisGale Regional Health System for a prompt response to heart emergencies. In most cases, access to our network of care means you can often avoid having to be transferred to facilities outside our system when you're in critical need of immediate life-saving measures.

Heart and vascular surgeries we offer

Our cardiovascular surgeons perform virtually every kind of cardiac surgery, including:

  • Coronary artery bypass
    • Minimally invasive procedures
    • Beating-heart/off-pump bypass
  • Heart valve repair and replacement
  • Cardiac-assist device implantation
    • Pacemaker
    • Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD)
  • Surgical ablation for atrial fibrillation (A-fib)

With our primary focus on quality outcomes and individual patient care, we significantly exceed survival rates as measured by The Society of Thoracic Surgery. As the effectiveness and safety of new technologies and procedures are established—with clear benefits to our patients—we offer them to you.

Minimally invasive heart care

Procedures that are less invasive than traditional open surgery are considered minimally invasive. Incisions are significantly smaller, perhaps only one-tenth the size of incisions required in typical open surgery. Miniature devices and tools, such as laparoscopes or endoscopes, are inserted through these tiny incisions to carry out the procedure.

Minimally invasive heart care offered by LewisGale Regional Health System includes:

  • Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and interventional cardiology—Emergency or elective procedures to quickly open blocked arteries using angioplasty, atherectomy and stenting; Average door-to-balloon time consistently outperforms the American College of Cardiology's standard of 90 minutes
  • Cardiac catheterization—Uses a small tube inserted into a blood vessel and X-rays to assess the heart and blood supply
  • Cardiac assist devices—Such as pacemakers and implantable cardioverter defibrillators to monitor heart rhythm and provide timely and appropriate treatment
  • Cardiac ablation—Uses extreme heat, cold or types of targeted radiation to destroy selected heart cells that create various irregular heart rhythms

Vascular surgery for varicose veins

If you experience discomfort or swelling in your legs because of varicose veins, you may have superficial venous reflux disease, a condition common to approximately 25 million Americans.

In many cases, varicose veins (also called spider veins) cause no symptoms, but these veins are often unattractive and may become painful over time. Legs with varicose veins may feel worse with prolonged sitting or standing.

Common symptoms of varicose veins include:

  • Aching pain
  • Burning
  • Easily tired legs
  • Leg heaviness
  • Rash on the legs
  • Itching
  • Leg swelling
  • Numbness in the legs
  • Darkening of the skin
  • Skin ulcers

LewisGale Regional Health System offers a minimally invasive treatment option for varicose veins—the VNUS Closure Procedure™. This procedure is performed on an outpatient basis and uses ultrasound and a delicately positioned catheter to deliver heat into the vein wall. The heat effectively seals the vein closed and allows blood to be rerouted to other healthy blood vessels.

Patients who undergo this procedure typically can resume normal activities within one day.

Your surgical care team

If you are dealing with a heart condition, your life depends on the people you choose to treat it. When you put your heart in the hands of the cardiovascular team at LewisGale Regional Health System, you benefit from:

  • Exceptional board-certified cardiologists—physicians who’ve committed to ongoing training and testing
  • Consistent performance well above national standards for heart attack and heart failure care
  • Our primary focus on high-quality outcomes, personal attention, long-term relationships and individual patient care
  • Integrated and coordinated care throughout our regional healthcare system network
  • Access to the full range of programs, services, treatments, technologies and providers available through our HCA Healthcare affiliations
  • A healthcare partnership that supports you and your primary care provider for excellent care close to home

You benefit from our specialists' combined expertise, backed by a team of highly trained nurses, technicians, therapists, rehabilitation specialists and others who are devoted to delivering excellent cardiovascular care. Our team of medical specialists includes:

  • Cardiothoracic surgeons
  • Cardiologists
  • Cardiac physician assistants
  • Electrophysiologists