Minimal invasive approaches for pediatric & congenital heart surgery: safe, reproducible, more cosmetic than through sternotomy, and here to stay

Minimal invasive approaches through small thoracic incisions for the isolated repair of the most common congenital heart defects have been around for decades. However, the lack of belonging in established surgical training curriculums compared to the traditional median sternotomy, the requirement for more technical expertise and a certain learning curve, has limited their use, being routinely performed only by certain surgeons in specialized centers. More recently, through cumulated and increasingly mediatized shared experience, remote teaching potential through universally accessible surgical videos and simulation, the approach has gained traction and acceptance, and even established itself as the new norm in many centers. In this review, we present technically focused aspects of our own experience and protocols which have evolved over time, along with a brief overview of the literature pertaining to other right thoracic approaches, and some comparison to established results using the traditional median sternotomy. An increasing body of literature, produced more frequently and across all continents, seems to suggest that repairs of congenital heart defects through a minimal invasive right thoracic approach are becoming the new norm, as they are reported to be safe and reproducible, with excellent surgical results, and an obvious superior and more desirable cosmetic result. This comes at a cost of additional training and learning curve by surgeons, who are not offered the technique as part of their standard professional training curriculum.