Dr. Julio Williams conducted Lufkin’s first Transmyocardial
Laser Revascularization (TMR) heart procedure

Using a high-energy, computerized laser, Dr. Julio Williams conducted Lufkin’s first Transmyocardial Laser Revascularization (TMR) heart procedure Tuesday at Woodland Heights Medical Center.

Fifty-six-year-old Archie Williams became the first heart patient to undergo the new procedure that uses a carbon dioxide (CO2) heart laser to create channels in the heart to improve blood flow.

During a three-hour procedure, Dr. Williams, a Lufkin cardiovascular surgeon, performed the TMR and a triple bypass on Mr. Williams.
The laser uses a computer to direct laser beams to the appropriate area of the heart in between heartbeats, when the ventricle is filled with blood and the heart is relatively still. This prevents electrical disturbances, arrhythmias, in the heart.

Dr. Williams created 17 channels in Mr. Williams’ heart that are an average of one millimeter wide — about the size of the head of a pin. The channels stopped Mr. Williams’ chest pain, which until Tuesday, could not be stopped by other medical procedures, Dr. Williams said.  Read the Press Release.