Thoracic Surgeon: Operations Performed by Thoracic Surgeons

Thoracic Surgeon. A thoracic surgeon is a medical doctor who performs operations on the heart, lungs, chest wall, diaphragm, esophagus, and other organs and vessels in the chest. This also includes surgeons who can be called cardiothoracic surgeons, cardiovascular surgeons, general thoracic surgeons, and congenital heart surgeons. Thoracic surgeons also perform open heart surgery.


The following is a list of surgeries performed by a thoracic surgeon.

• Bronchoscopy
• Coronary Artery Bypass Graft
• Esophagectomy
• Heart-Lung Transplant
• Lung Biopsy
• Lung Resection (lobectomy; pneumonectomy)
• Pericardiocentesis
• Thoracoscopy
• Thoracotomy
• Thoracostomy
• Valve Replacement