• Cancer or suspected cancers of the lung and esophagus
• Infections of the lung and chest
• Disorders of the airways
• Disease requiring lung transplant or lung volume reduction surgery
• Hyperhidrosis (excessive perspiration)
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)

CorVasc physicians specializing in cancer surgery, work as a team with medical and radiation oncologists, plastic surgeons, pulmonologists, pain management specialists and various cancer support groups to provide comprehensive cancer care. The Thoracic Malignancy Clinic, established by CorVasc surgeons, enables patients to see these specialists in a single office visit. Access to the latest therapies for cancer is also maintained by voluntary participation in local and national research treatments.

Minimally invasive thoracic surgery is also available from CorVasc surgeons. Many operations previously requiring large thoracotomy incisions can now be performed using several incisions often less than an inch in size, a camera and special instruments. These techniques result in less postoperative pain and often shorter recovery times for patients. Procedures available using minimally invasive techniques include but are not limited to:

• Lung resection
• Pleural biopsy
• Gastroesophageal reflux treatment
• Surgical treatment of swallowing disorders
• Removal of esophageal tumors
• Drainage of fluid and infections surrounding the lungs and heart.
• Sympathectomy for hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating)
  see article below

Hyperhidrosis - As Described in Health & Life Magazine, Summer 2004

The average person has to work up a sweat, but about 2 million Americans perspire excessively without lifting a finger. They have a condition called hyperhidrosis-extreme sweating of the hands, underarms and/or face.

I've seen the condition devastate teens preparing for prom, musicians and others," says Richard Freeman, M.D., director of thoracic surgery at St.Vincent Indianapolis Hospital. "The sweating makes even basic activities like holding a pen impossible."

Dr. Freeman, however, has pioneered a minimally invasive procedure offering a lifelong cure. Called Video Assisted Thoracoscopic Sympathectomy (VATS), the out-patient procedure places patients under general anesthesia while the surgeon makes 5-millimeter incisions on each side of the chest. "A tiny camera goes into one incision and a cauterizing device goes in the other," explains Dr. Freeman. "Guided by the camera's images, we can burn the nerves that trigger the problem."

In the past, surgeons made three 1-inch incisions and snipped the nerves, so patients had three-week recovery periods. "This new procedure," says Dr. Freeman, "wipes out the problem with less recovery time." For more clinical information regarding hyperhidrosis treatment, contact Dr. Richard Freeman at info@corvascmds.com.
 

For more general information on hyperhidrosis, visit www.hyperhidrosis.us.