January 27, 2006 --

Ben Swann-KFOX Morning News Anchor/Reporter

Every year, thousands of people have open-heart surgery. If you ask anyone who has had heart surgery, they are likely to say the experience was stressful and at times painful.

In this Health Watch Report, find out about a new way of doing things, called the Healing Enhancement Program. The goal is pain-free open-heart surgery. Yes, this program includes medications, but it also includes therapies like massage.

To Rod Anderson, playing a round of Frisbee golf with his buddies is a particularly pleasant experience. You see, Rod has not been on the course, since he had open-heart surgery to repair damage caused by an aortic dissection.

Rod said, sure, it was uncomfortable to have his chest opened for surgery, but that pain was nothing compared to...

"My back was literally killing me. It's almost indescribable the soreness that you feel," said Anderson.

Rod's surgeon, Dr. Thoralf Sundt III explains why patients are sore after surgery.

"When we open the sternum to do the surgery, the rib cage spreads in the back. So people experience pain between their shoulder blades," said Sundt.

Medications helped ease Rod's sore muscles, but he said message helped more.

"It helped my stress. Helped my pain in my back," said Anderson.

Massage is just one way experts at Mayo Clinic are working towards their goal of pain-free open-heart surgery. Why, because when patients are relaxed, they feel pain less.

In addition to massage, the program includes guided imagery where patients listen to special CD's, stress management counseling, and soothing music in patient rooms.

"The aim of the program is to address all of the needs of the patient," said Sundt.

So that patients like Rod will feel better faster and get back on the course of life sooner.

Dr. Sundt said he and his colleagues are addressing every aspect of open heart surgery, to find ways to make the experience better for patients and their families.

If you would like more medical news, visit our health partners Web sites:

M.D. Anderson Cancer Center:http://www.mdanderson.org/

The Mayo Clinic:http://www.medicaledge.org

Baylor College of Medicine:http://public.bcm.tmc.edu/