Harvesting the latissimus dorsi muscle for cardiomyoplasty

The development of cardiomyoplasty over the past several years has provided a surgical alternative for management of patients with severe heart failure. It may be indicated in patients for whom transplant is not indicated or must be delayed. Optimal results can be obtained when the maximum amount of viable muscle is used to wrap the heart. Between May of 1997 and October of 1998, five patients underwent cardiomyoplasty in our institution. All operations were performed using the left latissimus dorsi muscle wrap with postoperative stimulated muscle training. Presented is a review of cardiomyoplasty and our technique for harvesting the muscle flap, which has proven to be successful.