How to Become a Heart Surgeon: Steps, Education & Career Guide

A cardiothoracic or heart surgeon is a doctor who specializes in surgical procedures inside the thorax, which may involve the heart, lungs, esophagus and other parts of the chest. These medical professionals operate to cure diseases, such as coronary artery disease, occurring in organs, bony structures tissues that form the chest cavity.

What do cardiothoracic surgeons do?

A cardiovascular surgeon treats heart failure, coronary artery disease, heart valve disease and blockages of the arteries. A congenital heart surgeon generally treats congenital heart defects and cardiac conditions in children. Cardiac surgeons also have a lot of responsibilities, which can include performing evaluation and diagnosis, providing treatment plans for patients, considering non-surgical options instead of surgical options, meeting with patients prior to surgery to discuss their diagnosis and answer questions about the process, installing cardiac support devices, treat and manage tumors with minimally invasive catheter-based procedures, implanting pacemakers, perform robotic cardiac surgery, monitoring patients in an intensive care unit and updated patient after surgery and monitoring recovery.