Cosmetic aspects

Many "mild" heart defects can be cured today leaving hardly any traces. Only the operation scar remains for life. Opening the entire breastbone leaves behind a scar the length of the breastbone and is often associated with a severe heart defect that requires such an incision. This can sometimes cause anxiety, for instance, about whether the child is at risk during school sports. Apart from the lower tissue injury and the personal advantage of a nice small and possibly concealed scar, a small scar has the benefit of not being overrated as a “heart defect scar“.

We therefore use a minimally invasive approach for all atrial septal defects that cannot be closed by cardiac catheterisation (this is the first question - it is possible in two out of three cases). This is also possible with a few other heart defects.

Atrial septal defects: we choose a lower partial sternotomy for atrial septal defects; this means a longitudinal opening of only the lower third of the breastbone. The scar is only a few centimetres long and disappears completely below the shirt neckline.