Cardiac Surgery at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center RiverBend

The heart is a powerful muscle. Shaped like an upside-down pear, your heart is about the size of your fist and weighs between 7 and 15 ounces. A strong heart is fundamental to your good health. But sometimes problems or diseases arise that require medical attention and intervention.

Cardiac treatment has come a long way since the Greeks first performed heart surgery in 400 BC. It wasn’t until the mid-1970s that medical scientists perfected the technology and techniques that have allowed for successful heart surgery that each year saves millions of lives worldwide.

Sacred Heart Medical Center in Eugene was the first hospital between Portland and San Francisco to offer heart surgery as early as 1971. Today, the Oregon Heart & Vascular Institute at Sacred Heart at RiverBend continues to keep pace with the latest innovations in heart surgery, making it one of the Northwest’s most successful heart surgery centers. Our team of specialists works together to prevent, diagnose and determine the best treatment options for each patient.

Sometimes the best—or only—option to help you regain your health is to undergo heart surgery, which is done to:

• Relieve chest pain and reduce the risk of heart attack
• Repair or replace valves that control blood flow through the heart
• Repair abnormal or damaged structures in the heart
• Implant medical devices that regulate heart rhythms or blood flow
• Replace a damaged heart with a healthy heart from a donor