Minimally invasive – the quiet triumph of modern heart surgery

The median sternotomy was the standard approach for cardiac surgery for many decades. With the advent of minimally invasive procedures, the guiding question of cardiac surgery shifted: away from maximum exposure towards minimally necessary invasiveness with unchanged safety and long-term prognosis. Minimally invasive cardiac surgery (MICS) aims to reduce surgical trauma without compromising on completeness of reconstruction, myocardial protection and long-term outcome.