Core Concepts in Cardiac Surgery

The development of new techniques and the refinement of established procedures make cardiac surgery a fast-moving field. Core concepts in cardiac surgery has been developed to make it an invaluable textbook for the professional cardiac and cardiothoracic surgeon, covering both topical issues and updates in cardiac surgery. This provides the practising cardiac surgeon with current updates in the field, and controversial issues that affect everyday practice. Written by an international team of renowned cardiac surgeons, each topic is split into a review of the current literature and then important technical details. Their wealth of professional experience has been distilled into tips and common pitfalls in practice throughout the book. Extensively illustrated with full-colour photographs and artwork to facilitate understanding of complex procedures, Core concepts in cardiac surgery is also available on a companion website, to allow the authors to update the text regularly to reflect developments in the discipline.

Prof David Taggart has been a consultant cardiac surgeon in Oxford since 1995 and a Professor of Cardiovascular Surgery at the University of Oxford since 2003. His clinical and academic interests are in all aspects of the surgical management of coronary artery disease and especially the use of arterial grafts and 'off-pump' surgery (avoiding the use of a 'bypass' machine). He has published over 120 peer-reviewed research articles and is internationally recognised for his work in this field. He is the immediate Past-President of the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery and currently sits on several European Task Forces guiding the optimal management of coronary artery disease. Mr. Abu-Omar undertook his training in cardiothoracic surgery at Papworth, Oxford and London. Prior to that, he spent 3 years completing a research project investigating cerebral injury following cardiac surgery, and obtaining a Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) at the University of Oxford. Mr. Abu-Omar performs the full range of adult cardiac operations. His areas of interest include minimally invasive surgery, mitral valve surgery, coronary revascularization and surgery for atrial fibrillation. He is also a member of the transplant team at Papworth. His research interests include investigating the efficacy of surgery for atrial fibrillation, the investigation of end-organ injury following cardiac surgery and beating-heart surgery. He has published widely and is currently the co-editor of two forthcoming textbooks. He also has a major interest in education and training.