M Health Fairview Heart Care at Fairview Southdale Hospital is currently the only facility in the region performing robotic percutaneous coronary intervention with the CorPath system. This treatment option improves precision during your angioplasty or catheterization procedure while limiting radiation exposure. While you are sedated, an interventional cardiologist will advance coronary guide wires or balloon/stent catheters with the aid of a robotic device. One unit of the device will be at your bedside, translating your physician’s commands into precise movements and manipulations of the wires, balloons and stents. Your physician will perform the procedure from a control console, also near your bedside, watching his or her actions on a real-time monitor.

There are many benefits to this system. With the aid of the robotic device, your physician can move the catheter a millimeter at a time, accuracy that is difficult to achieve with traditional angioplasty. The coronary wire may be turned precisely at 30 degree rotations in either direction. Your anatomy can also be measured more precisely, enabling your physician to choose the right treatment for you. During the procedure, your physician will have an enhanced, close-up view of your arteries, ensuring that the wires, balloons, and stents are properly placed.

M Health Fairview Heart Care is known for its pioneering heart care. Many cardiac procedures were done for the first time at the University of Minnesota. Our physicians performed the first repair of a hole in one of the heart’s chambers. Other firsts at the Heart Center include the world’s first successful open heart surgery. We have extensive experience in the repair and replacement of heart valves using mechanical, tissue, or donor valves, depending on your unique situation.