Kent H. Rehfeldt

About

Dr. Kent H. Rehfeldt is a pioneering cardiac anesthesiologist whose research has been instrumental in advancing robotic mitral valve surgery. His work focuses on the anesthetic management and perioperative care of patients undergoing minimally invasive cardiac procedures, with a particular emphasis on improving surgical outcomes and patient experience. Dr. Rehfeldt’s landmark 2011 study on robotic mitral valve repair for all categories of leaflet prolapse (62 citations) demonstrated that this technique could improve patient appeal and advance the standard of care, establishing a new paradigm in cardiac surgery. He has also authored key reviews on anesthetic considerations for robotic mitral valve surgery (21 citations) and detailed the anesthetic management of the first 200 patients undergoing this procedure (19 citations). His 2011 paper on robot-assisted mitral valve repair (20 citations) further solidified his contributions to the field. Through his research, Dr. Rehfeldt has shown that robotic approaches reduce hospital stays, pain, blood transfusions, and recovery time compared to traditional sternotomy, while also identifying and troubleshooting rare complications like poor venous drainage during cardiopulmonary bypass. His work continues to shape the safe and effective integration of robotics into cardiac anesthesia and surgery.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Robotic Mitral Valve Repair for All Categories of Leaflet Prolapse: Improving Patient Appeal and Advancing Standard of Care

   62 citations · 2011
2. 2
   Anesthetic considerations in robotic mitral valve surgery

   21 citations · 2017
3. 3
   Robot-Assisted Mitral Valve Repair

   20 citations · 2011
4. 4
   Robotic Mitral Valve Repair: A Review of Anesthetic Management of the First 200 Patients

   19 citations · 2013
5. 5
   An unexpected cause of poor venous drainage during robotic mitral valve repair

   4 citations · 2009

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links