Other Surgical Procedures and Emerging Technologies
An aneurysm is a bulge in a blood vessel, and much like an over-inflated balloon, it is dangerous because it may burst. Aneurysms commonly occur in the aorta, the main artery leading away from the heart. In these cases, they usually happen in the abdominal aorta below the renal (kidney) arteries, which is called an abdominal aneurysm, or in the chest cavity, an occurrence known as a thoracic aneurysm.
Heart Failure Surgery
One type of heart failure is called congestive heart failure. Usually a chronic long-term condition, it occurs when the heart is unable to pump blood efficiently. When the hearts' pumping ability is diminished, blood can back up to other parts of the body such as the lungs, liver, or gastrointestinal tract and extremities of the body, such as the arms and feet.
The more common causes for the congestive heart failure are coronary artery disease (CAD) and hypertension. Other conditions such as congenital heart disease, valvular heart disease, dilated cardiomyopathy (a disease of the heart muscle characterized by thinning and enlargement of the ventricle, affecting its ability to pump blood efficiently), lung disease and heart tumors can also cause congestive heart failure.
Hyperhidrosis is a condition that that causes excessive sweating at inappropriate times.
It usually occurs suddenly or happens continuously, with no apparent cause like exercise. Among the factors that aggravate hyperhidrosis are emotional stress and certain foods. High ambient temperatures, as in the hot and warm months of the year, can also set it off. The condition usually improves during the cool and cold months, and sweating usually stops during sleep. Heredity is thought to play a role in the condition; 25 percent of people with it have family members with symptoms.
The treatment of choice for severe hyperhidrosis is thoracoscopic sympathectomy surgery. The surgery consists of the interruption of nerve impulses to sweat glands of the palms, face, axillae (armpits) by cutting or electrocautery (burning with an electrical current).