On September 5, 2024, at the Shupyk National Healthcare University of Ukraine, in a one-time specialized academic council, the official defense of the dissertations of post-graduate students of the department of cardiac surgery, X-ray endovascular and extracorporeal technologies Igor Stetsyuk (scientific supervisor – Professor Borys Todurov) and Mykhailo Todurov (scientific supervisor – associate professor Oleg Zelenchuk) took place.

The meeting was chaired by the head of the department of anesthesiology and intensive care, Professor Oleg Loskutov, with the involvement of scientific and pedagogical workers and postgraduate students of the department of cardiac surgery, X-ray endovascular and extracorporeal technologies; employees of the clinical base of the department – State University “Heart Institute of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine”. The reviewers were Professor of the Department of Surgery of the Heart and Main Vessels Rostyslav Vitovskyi and Professor of the Department of Surgery and Transplantology Valentyn Smorzhevskyi; Opponents were Artur Gabrielyan, Doctor of Medical Sciences, and Kostyantyn Rudenko, Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, Doctor of Medical Sciences, expert of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine in the field of “Surgery of Heart and Main Vessels”.

The scientific work of Ihor Stetsyuk “Effectiveness of valve-preserving operations for aortic root and ascending aortic aneurysms” made it possible to establish that aortic valve-preserving operations are an alternative to replacing the aortic root with a conduit containing a mechanical prosthesis in patients with thoracic aortic aneurysm and provide good long-term results and associated with a low risk of valve-associated complications. However, the surgeon must be well versed in the anatomy and pathology of the aortic valve and able to apply the concepts of functional anatomy to create an anatomically and functionally satisfactory reconstructed aortic root.
The results of the dissertation work of Mykhailo Todurov “Justification and evaluation of the effectiveness of transcatheter aortic valve prosthetics in patients with aortic valve stenosis” is a study that the use of transcatheter aortic valve prosthetics (TAVI) in patients with aortic stenosis and high or medium surgical risk is characterized by a shorter length of stay in the intensive care unit and hospitalization in general, better early postoperative results and quality of life, which indicates the effectiveness and safety of this technique in such a complex cohort of patients.

Based on the positive reviews of the reviewers and taking into account the results of the scientific discussion, the works of postgraduate students of the department are recommended for awarding the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.