Centennial Heart Center Milestone:
“Mini-Maze” Surgery Brings Hope to Atrial Fib Patients

NASHVILLE, TN—February 14th, 2006- The Centennial Heart Center is the first in Tennessee to offer a new minimally invasive heart surgery that can correct atrial fibrillation (AFib), a common heart rhythm abnormality affecting 2.2 million Americans.

"For the first time we have a truly minimally invasive procedure called the “Mini Maze” that can permanently eliminate AFib, return patients to their normal rhythm and significantly reduce their risk of stroke, weakness of the heart muscle, and congestive heart failure," says Centennial Heart Center cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Robert Binford.

The procedure does not require use of the heart/lung machine and is performed through small incisions between the ribs. "This is a substantial advancement and the only truly minimally invasive approach to surgically solve AFib," said Dr. Binford. "Patients go home within two to three days and won't experience the long, difficult recovery of traditional open chest surgery."

Dr. Binford says the name of this procedure is based on the concept of a maze. The incisions create barriers and several blind alleys allowing for only one major route for an electrical impulse to travel from the top to the bottom of the heart.

38-year old Kent Woods of Nashville underwent the Mini-Maze in December and is now enjoying an active lifestyle -- free of blood thinners and other medication previously used to treat his AFib. "I feel much more at ease and more energized. I have moved from being treated for AFib symptoms to being cured of AFib," says Woods.

"Until now, the options available to AFib patients were unattractive at best: a lifetime of anticoagulant therapy, a permanent pacemaker or a difficult, invasive operation," according to Dr. Binford. "The Mini-Maze offers patients an optimal choice."

“A New Surgical Approach to Treating Atrial Fibrillation,” will be presented at a free public seminar given by Dr. Binford on Wednesday, March 29th from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the 3-Tower classroom on the main campus of Centennial Medical Center located at 2300 Patterson Street.  To register, call TriStar MedLine at 615-342-1919.

The Centennial Heart Center has recently been recognized as a Cardiovascular Center of Excellence an honor received by less than 1% of HCA hospitals nationwide. Centennial Medical Center, part of the TriStar Health System, is a 615-bed tertiary facility that has been accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.  Centennial Medical Center has been recognized as one of the country’s 100 Top Hospitals in stroke, orthopaedics, and breast cancer management.