Columbia's Flagship, Columbia Centennial Medical Center, Introduces "Port-Access" Minimally Invasive Heart Surgery to Tennessee; First Hospital in Columbia System to Begin Using Heartport's Systems for Wide Range of Minimally Invasive Heart Operations.

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BW HealthWire)--March 4, 1997--Heart surgeons, Scott Rankin, M.D. and Phillip Brown, M.D., from Columbia Centennial Medical Center became the first in Tennessee to perform Port-Access(TM) minimally invasive heart surgery when they successfully completed a complex "re-do" mitral valve replacement using the new technology. The patient, Barbara Kirkland of Lebanon, Tenn., was discharged today, four days after having the surgery. Centennial, which is the flagship hospital of Columbia, the nation's largest hospital system, is also the first Columbia hospital in the country to perform heart surgery using the Port-Access Systems.

"Since we introduced minimally invasive heart surgery options last year at Columbia Centennial Medical Center for single coronary artery bypasses on a beating heart, great strides continue to be made," said Phillip Brown, M.D, cardiothoracic surgeon at Columbia Centennial. "We're excited now to introduce Port-Access, which will enable us to perform more complex heart surgery through less invasive techniques, which is good news for patients. With this new technology, Columbia is confirming its commitment to advanced technology and procedures throughout its system."

The Port-Access Systems, developed by Heartport, Inc. (HPRT, Redwood City, CA), enable surgeons to perform the widest possible range of heart surgeries, including coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and mitral valve replacement and repair (MVR), without the need to divide the patient's sternum. With Port-Access, the heart is stopped and the patient is protected with cardiopulmonary bypass. This new approach promises to reduce the trauma, complications, and pain of traditional open-chest heart surgery, and lead to shorter hospital stays, less scarring, faster recoveries, and less risk for patients. To date, about 350 CABG and MVR surgeries have been performed worldwide using the Port-Access Systems.

Because it incorporates a minimally invasive way to stop and protect the heart during surgery, the Port-Access approach makes it possible for surgeons to reach vessels on the front, sides, and back of the heart, or to open the heart to perform internal procedures. During Port-Access CABG surgery, the heart is kept still and empty, which allows surgeons to safely and accurately reestablish blood flow to all three major zones of the heart. In addition, the Port-Access minimally invasive heart surgery system allows surgeons to open the heart to repair or replace damaged heart valves.

Patients who undergo the Port-Access procedure are spared the trauma of having the breastbone cut and the ribcage spread open in order to have adequate access for coronary surgeries. Instead of the traditional 12- to 18-inch incision, surgeons make a primary incision, or access "port," of less than three inches between the patient's ribs. Depending on the nature of the surgery, one to three smaller access ports between the patient's ribs are sometimes created to enable enhanced visualization via special scopes.

Columbia, one of the nation's largest providers of healthcare services, serves the mid-state area with eight hospitals in the Nashville Division which have a combined total of over 1,700 beds. Columbia's Nashville Division includes Columbia Centennial Medical Center, Columbia Cheatham Medical Center, Columbia Hendersonville Hospital, Columbia Horizon Medical Center, Columbia Nashville Memorial Hospital, Columbia Southern Hills Medical Center, and Columbia Summit Medical Center. Columbia's Nashville Division also includes Columbia Care Medical Centers, Columbia Healthcare Care Network, Columbia Homecare and Columbia Senior Friends. Providing more than $226 million in uncompensated and charity care last year, these facilities offer a vast array of primary care, emergency care and specialty services including the mid-state's largest full-service psychiatric facility, the area's most comprehensive cancer program, one of the region's leading women's health centers, The Women's Hospital, as well as being a new leader in Cardiac Care.

CONTACT: Centennial Medical Center

Tonya McCulla, 615/342-1903

or

Heartport, Inc.

Jim Weiss, 415/482-4430