• Statistics
• Our policy
• Medical services
• Areas of expertise
• Treatment methods
• Outpatient Clinic
• Training for Foreign Medical Students and Graduates

About Us

Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at the University of Tokyo Hospital started in 1964 as the first thoracic surgery department at university hospital in Japan.

With about 400 cardiac and thoracic great vessel surgeries performed annually, the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery is one of the leading institutions of Japan. Minimally invasive techniques such as off-pump bypass surgery without using a heart-lung machine have been applied to many patients.

Statistics

Numbers of major operations and treatments performed (total number of cardiovascular surgeries: 440 in 2023) Name of operation/treatment Number* Coronary artery bypass grafting 18, Valve replacement and repair 43, Surgery for thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissection 21, Valve-sparing aortic root replacement 17, Heart transplantation 25, Ventricular assist device 18, Congenital heart disease 127 (January to December, 2023)

*

including complex surgical procedures

Numbers of major operations and treatments performed
(total number of cardiovascular surgeries: 440 in 2023)

	NAME OF OPERATION/TREATMENT	NUMBER*
1	Coronary artery bypass grafting	18
2	Valve replacement and repair	43
3	Surgery for thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissection	21
4	Valve-sparing aortic root replacement	17
5	Heart transplantation	25
6	Ventricular assist device	18
7	Congenital heart disease	127

(January to December, 2023)

*

including complex surgical procedures

Our policy

Treatment plans are determined at clinical conferences based on detailed examination and discussion.

Joint conferences are also held regularly with the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine and/or the Department of Pediatrics to discuss cases referred by other institutions.

Medical services

Prescheduled surgeries are performed everyday each week along with emergency surgeries.

The department consists of three teams specializing in different areas: adult heart disease (ischemic heart disease, valvular heart disease, arrhythmia disorders, advanced heart failure), aortic disease (thoracic aneurysm, aortic dissection, etc.); and congenital heart disease.

Outpatient services are provided every week day.

Areas of expertise

Diseases

1. Ischemic heart disease
2. Valvular heart disease
3. Advanced heart failure (such as idiopathic and ischemic cardiomyopathies)
4. Infective endocarditis and aneurysms
5. Thoracic and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms and dissection
6. Congenital heart diseases (neonate, infant, child and adult)
7. Complex cardiac anomalies, such as hypoplastic left heart syndrome

Treatment methods

1. Off-pump or beating-heart coronary artery bypass grafting
2. Mitral valvuloplasty and valve-sparing aortic root replacement
3. Cardiac transplantation and various mechanical circulatory supports (including destination therapy by continuous-flow ventricular assist device)
4. Curative treatment of infection, using allograft heart valves and aorta
5. Graft replacement and endovascular repair for extensive thoracic (thoracoabdominal) aortic aneurysms and dissection
6. Various repairs for complex congenital heart diseases including arterial switches, Norwood operation, Bidirecional Glenn operation and Fontan operations, etc.
7. Norwood operation, Bidirecional Glenn operation and Fontan operations

In our department, about 90% of patients requiring coronary-artery bypass surgery undergo off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB) surgery. In almost all patients with mitral insufficiency, valvuloplasty is performed.
The Maze procedure is also frequently performed to treat arterial fibrillation. Our department is one of the departments in Japan where valve-sparing aortic root replacement is most frequently performed to treat annuloaortic ectasia. In cooperation with Marfan syndrome center, many patients with hereditary connective tissue diseases are referred to our department.

Graft replacement for aortic arch and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm that protects the brain and spinal cord are also performed in many patients. Using these procedures, highly successful surgical results have been achieved in patients aged 75 and older as well as in serious cases with complications.

As for congenital heart disease, many surgical procedures such as the Norwood procedure, the Jatene procedure, and the Fontan procedure have been performed successfully for complex heart malformations. Minimally invasive surgery that takes appearance into consideration and surgery without blood transfusion are also performed.

Our department has been approved as a heart transplant facility and has performed over 200 heart transplants as well as ventricular assist device (VAD) surgery. We have the most successful Heart transplantations and VAD implantation record in Japan.

Outpatient Clinic

Make an appointment

Call Center

10:00-17:00 (Week Days)
TEL: +81-3-5800-8630

International Patients

*

A formal referral via a coordinator or facilitator is required for international patients.

Hospital services are provided by advance reservation only.
Call Reservation Center for details: +81-3-5800-8630 [10:00-17:00]
Patients with urgent needs are requested to consult their physicians or local hospitals.

Contact Reservation Center for appointments in advance.
Reservation Center Opening hours: 10:00 to 17:00 (except for Saturdays, Sundays, national holidays, and New Year's holiday)
Contact: +81-3-5800-8630

Initial Consultation at the University of Tokyo Hospital

Training for Foreign Medical Students and Graduates

The University of Tokyo Hospital offers a wide range of advanced medical education and training opportunities to foreign medical students and graduates.

1. Advanced Clinical Training
2. Clinical Observership Training
3. Visitorship
4. Visiting Research Associate (post-graduate surgical training career is required)

Please be aware that these are different from the residency program. A trainee is required to have a Japanese medical license for the residency program.

If you are interested in our cardiac surgery program at the University of Tokyo, please contact:

Education & Training for Foreign Medical Graduates