Early outcomes of minimally invasive mitral and tricuspid valve surgery in obese patients

Background: Minimal invasive valve surgery is the new trend in cardiac surgery. Many obstacles are present to increase the number of cases operated on with minimally invasive surgery. Minimal invasive surgery is technically demanding in obese patients with uncertain outcomes. In this study, we compared minimal invasive mitral and tricuspid valve surgery (MIVS) in obese patients with high BMI (body mass index) to normal BMI. Method: We included 240 cases who underwent MIVS. These cases were divided into two groups. Group I (n=120) included patients with BMI >30 Kg/m2, and Group II (n=120) had BMI ≤30 Kg/m2. Result: There was no in-hospital mortality in both group. Postoperative wound infection was nonsignificantly higher in Group I (9 (7.5%) vs. 2 (1.67%); P= 0.059). Drainage (450± 112 vs. 240± 230 ml; P<0.001), mechanical ventilation time (13.4± 1.3 vs. 6.4± 6.8 h; P<0.001), and ICU stay (2± 0.4 vs. 3.5± 1.3 days, P<0.001) were significantly higher in Group I. New onset atrial fibrillation was significantly higher in obese patients (P= 0.029). There were no differences between both groups in other outcomes. Conclusion: Minimally invasive surgery in obese patients had satisfactory outcomes compared to those with normal BMI. Obesity should not be considered a contraindication for minimally invasive surgery.