Greetings
Our hospital's Cardiovascular Surgery department has eight full-time staff members, five of whom are specialists. While we primarily treat acquired heart, great vessel, and peripheral vascular diseases, we perform roughly equal numbers of surgeries for valvular disease, ischemic heart disease, and thoracic aortic disease, with over 250 surgeries performed annually using the cardiopulmonary bypass. Including abdominal aortic surgery, we perform over 200 aortic surgeries annually. Approximately 30% of these surgeries are emergency procedures where every minute counts, so our staff work nights and weekends. Emergency surgeries started late at night sometimes remain unfinished by the next morning, resulting in scheduled surgeries being delayed or patients being unable to attend outpatient appointments. Even in these cases, we strive to avoid inconvenience to patients through teamwork among all staff members, but we understand that this may not always be possible. If you have any concerns, please feel free to let us know via the suggestion box or other means.
Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery
Yasunori Naga
Treatment details
Cardiovascular Surgery provides surgical treatment for ischemic heart disease, including angina pectoris; acquired heart disease, including valvular heart disease; arrhythmia; aortic disease, primarily aortic aneurysm and aortic dissection; congenital heart disease; and arteriovenous diseases of the limbs and internal organs, including arteriosclerosis obliterans. We also treat patients with highly urgent conditions, especially those with specific conditions. In keeping with our hospital's mission to contribute to regional emergency medical care, our small but highly skilled staff literally dedicates themselves to providing medical care. Providing advanced surgical care is our goal and obligation. In outpatient care, we focus on diagnosing referred patients, determining treatment plans, and providing early postoperative care. To foster and develop collaboration between hospitals and clinics, we encourage patients who have stabilized after surgery to seek medical care at local clinics.
Main target diseases
Ischemic heart disease includes angina pectoris, post-myocardial infarction left ventricular aneurysm, ischemic mitral regurgitation, ventricular septal perforation, and left ventricular rupture. Valvular heart disease includes aortic regurgitation/stenosis, mitral regurgitation/stenosis, tricuspid valve/pulmonary valve disease, and bacterial endocarditis. Pericardial disease includes constrictive pericarditis. Aortic disease includes acute aortic dissection, true aortic aneurysm, coarctation of the aorta, and traumatic aortic injury. Peripheral vascular disease includes arteriosclerosis obliterans, stenosis, acute or chronic occlusion of the limbs, varicose veins, venous thrombosis, and visceral aneurysms of the abdominal organs. Surgical treatment is also available for paroxysmal or chronic atrial fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia associated with heart disease. Bradyarrhythmias, such as sinus node dysfunction and atrioventricular block, are also candidates for treatment. Currently, we perform surgeries for congenital heart disease, such as atrial septal defect, ventricular septal defect, and patent ductus arteriosus, on patients of school age or older.
Main medical achievements
In 2024, 747 patients underwent surgery in our department, including 637 open-heart surgeries using cardiopulmonary bypass and thoracic and abdominal aortic surgeries, 44 peripheral artery surgeries, and numerous lower limb varicose vein surgeries. Surgical procedures included 66 coronary artery bypass surgeries, 310 valve repairs and replacements, and 208 thoracic and abdominal aortic artificial vascular replacements or stent graft placements. Tokai University Hospital is a facility actively providing advanced emergency medical care, with more than 30% of aortic and peripheral vascular surgeries being emergency procedures. We also treat more than 70 cases of acute aortic dissection annually, including those treated conservatively, many of which are transferred by ambulance from hospitals in the Seisho area. Our areas of particular focus include left ventriculoplasty, such as the Doll procedure for ischemic cardiomyopathy (over 100 cases performed since 2002), autologous valve-sparing root replacement for aortic regurgitation due to aortic root dilatation (over 50 cases performed), mitral valve repair (performed in 90% of mitral valve surgeries), Maze surgery for atrial fibrillation (32 cases performed in 2024), and stent graft placement for aortic aneurysms (46 cases performed in 2024). Since 2011, we have had two parallel cardiopulmonary bypass machines, and since 2017, we have had access to a hybrid operating room, enabling not only hybrid surgery but also emergency care during scheduled surgery. We also perform minimally invasive surgical procedures (MICS) upon request. We believe we can further contribute to regional medical care.
Doctor List
Department Head: Yasunori Cho
Assistant Chief Physician of Ward 7A: Satoshi Kotani
Clinical department URL: https://www.fuzoku-hosp.tokai.ac.jp/service/shinzou-geka/
Outpatient: 0463 (93) 1121 extension 6201, 6202
Professor Yasunori Cho
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialist | Cardiovascular Surgery Specialist and Training Instructor / Japanese Society for Thoracic Surgery Supervisor / Japanese Surgical Society Supervisor and Specialist |
| Specialized Areas | Coronary artery bypass surgery, left ventriculoplasty, valvular disease surgery, mitral valve repair, aortic surgery |
| Outpatient medical day | Monday |
Professor Kenji Kuwaki
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialist | Cardiovascular Surgery Specialist and Training Instructor / Japanese Society for Thoracic Surgery Supervisor / Japanese Surgical Society Supervisor and Specialist |
| Specialized Areas | Off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery, valvular heart disease surgery, mitral valve repair |
| Outpatient medical day | Wednesday |
Lecturer: Soshu Kotani
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialist | Cardiovascular Surgery Specialist / Japan Surgical Society Specialist / Thoracic Aortic Stent Graft Performer and Supervisor / Abdominal Aortic Stent Graft Performer |
| Specialized Areas | Congenital heart disease, valvular disease surgery, aortic surgery, stent graft surgery |
| Outpatient medical day | Saturday |
Lecturer: Kimiaki Okada
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialist | Cardiovascular Surgery Specialist, Training Instructor, TAVI Performer, Specialist of the Japanese Surgical Society |
| Specialized Areas | Minimally invasive surgery, valvular surgery, aortic surgery |
| Outpatient medical day | Friday |
Lecturer: Keisuke Ozawa
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialist | Cardiovascular Surgery Specialist / Japan Surgical Society Specialist / Japanese Society of Angiology Specialist / Thoracic Aortic Stent Graft Specialist and Instructor / Abdominal Aortic Stent Graft Specialist and Instructor |
| Specialized Areas | Coronary artery bypass surgery, valvular heart surgery, aortic surgery, stent graft surgery |
| Outpatient medical day | Monday |
Assistant Professor Akiyoshi Yamamoto
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialist | Japan Surgical Society Specialist / Japan Angiology Society Specialist / Thoracic Aortic Stent Graft Specialist / Abdominal Aortic Stent Graft Specialist / Endovascular Treatment Specialist for Varicose Veins |
| Specialized Areas | Aortic surgery, peripheral vascular surgery, acquired heart disease, stent graft surgery, peripheral vascular surgery |
| Outpatient medical day | Saturday |
Assistant Professor Goro Kishinami
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialized Areas | Aortic surgery/peripheral vascular surgery, acquired heart disease |
| Outpatient medical day | Wednesday |
Assistant Professor Ryuichi Tamimoto
| Specialization | Cardiovascular Surgery |
|---|---|
| Specialized Areas | Acquired heart disease, aortic/peripheral vascular surgery |