Fundación Favaloro

Fundación Favaloro stands as one of the world's most respected institutions for cardiac surgery and cardiovascular medicine — its global reputation built on the legacy of its founder, Dr. René G. Favaloro, the Argentine surgeon who in 1967 performed the first successful coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) at the Cleveland Clinic in the United States, permanently revolutionizing the treatment of coronary artery disease and saving millions of lives worldwide.

Born in La Plata, Argentina, in 1923, Dr. Favaloro returned to his homeland and established the Favaloro Foundation in 1992 alongside a dedicated team of colleagues, driven by three guiding principles: the provision of excellent medical care, the generation of rigorous scientific knowledge, and the education of the next generation of health professionals. Located at Avenida Belgrano 1746 in the heart of Buenos Aires, the Foundation operates a 175-bed university hospital — the Instituto de Cardiología y Cirugía Cardiovascular (ICYCC) — serving as both a clinical reference center and a premier academic institution.

Over the decades, the Foundation has expanded well beyond cardiac surgery to encompass pulmonology, nephrology, hepatology, gastroenterology, a comprehensive Institute of Neurosciences, orthopedics, and bariatric surgery. Its organ transplantation programs — covering heart, heart-lung, lung, liver, kidney, renal-pancreatic, intestinal, and bone marrow transplants — rank among the most active and clinically successful in all of Latin America.

Fundación Favaloro is affiliated with Universidad Favaloro, an independent university that trains physicians and health professionals in the spirit of the Foundation's academic ideals. The institution holds ITAES accreditation, confirming compliance with Argentina's highest hospital quality standards, and its research faculty publish regularly in leading international medical journals.

Cardiovascular medicine and cardiac surgery are the flagship clinical programs at Fundación Favaloro. The Institute of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery (ICYCC) performs more than 500 cardiac surgeries per year, encompassing coronary artery bypass grafting, valve repair and replacement, aortic aneurysm surgery, congenital heart defect correction in adults and children, and ventricular assist device implantation as a bridge to transplantation or destination therapy. Interventional cardiology services include coronary angioplasty and stenting, structural heart interventions such as transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), transcatheter mitral repair, and complex electrophysiology studies with catheter ablation.

Thoracic surgery addresses lung cancer resection, esophageal surgery, and mediastinal disease management. The pulmonology department provides comprehensive management of asthma, COPD, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary hypertension, and sleep-disordered breathing, supported by a dedicated sleep laboratory.

The Institute of Neurosciences offers diagnosis and treatment across neurology, psychiatry, and neurosurgery, covering stroke, epilepsy, Parkinson's disease and movement disorders, brain tumors, and degenerative neurological conditions in both adults and children. Orthopedics handles joint replacement, spinal surgery, and sports medicine. Nephrology and hepatology units support and provide clinical management for the transplant programs.

The highly active transplant program performs heart, heart-lung, lung, liver, kidney, reno-pancreatic, intestinal, and bone marrow transplants — among the highest-volume programs in Latin America. Bariatric surgery, gastroenterology, endocrinology, and internal medicine complete the comprehensive clinical portfolio available at the Foundation.

Fundación Favaloro's hospital campus at Avenida Belgrano 1746 in Buenos Aires houses 175 inpatient beds, including specialized cardiac, surgical, transplant, and general medical wards. The cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) is equipped with advanced hemodynamic monitoring, intra-aortic balloon pump support, and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) capability — enabling management of the most critically ill cardiovascular patients, including those awaiting transplantation.

The surgical complex includes multiple dedicated cardiac operating theatres fitted with heart-lung bypass machines, cell-saver devices, intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography, and fluoroscopic imaging systems. A hybrid operating room enables combined surgical and interventional procedures in a single setting, critical for complex structural heart and vascular cases.

High-quality cardiac catheterization laboratories support both diagnostic coronary angiography and complex interventional procedures, including structural heart interventions. Advanced diagnostic imaging encompasses cardiac MRI, cardiac CT angiography, PET scanning, nuclear cardiology, comprehensive echocardiography including 3D echo and transesophageal imaging, and a full suite of vascular ultrasound services — all available on-site with specialist reporting.

The clinical laboratory operates around the clock, providing rapid coagulation, electrolyte, and cardiac biomarker results essential to post-cardiac surgical management. Supporting facilities include a dedicated post-transplant ICU, a pulmonary function laboratory, a polysomnography sleep study unit, gastrointestinal endoscopy suites, a full-service blood bank with major trauma capability, and an on-site pharmacy specializing in cardiovascular and immunosuppressant medications.

Fundación Favaloro has established a dedicated International Patient Center to assist patients from abroad traveling to Buenos Aires for cardiac surgery, transplantation, and other complex procedures. The Foundation's reputation — grounded in the world-changing legacy of Dr. René Favaloro himself — attracts patients from across Latin America, the United States, Europe, and other regions seeking access to one of the world's most experienced cardiac surgery teams.

The International Patient Center provides comprehensive support services, including remote pre-operative consultation and case review by Foundation specialists, assistance with Argentine medical visa applications, coordination of airport transfers and nearby accommodation, interpretation services in Spanish, English, and Portuguese, and detailed written cost estimates before any procedure is undertaken. A dedicated case manager is assigned to each international patient to ensure continuity from first contact through post-discharge follow-up.

Cardiac surgery at Fundación Favaloro is available at a fraction of the cost of equivalent procedures in North America or Western Europe, while clinical outcomes are consistently at the top tier of the Argentine national surgical registry. Patients who have undergone coronary bypass, valve replacement, cardiac transplantation, and other complex procedures at the Foundation regularly report high levels of satisfaction with both clinical outcomes and the patient experience.

For international patients with complex cardiac pathology who cannot obtain appropriate care at home — or who face prohibitive costs in their home country — Fundación Favaloro represents a globally recognized option offering world-class surgical expertise and ITAES-validated quality at a significantly more accessible cost.

Fundación Favaloro holds accreditation from ITAES — the Instituto Técnico para la Acreditación de Establecimientos de Salud — Argentina's national healthcare accreditation authority. The ITAES process evaluates institutions against comprehensive standards covering patient safety, clinical governance, infection control, staff qualifications, facility management, and quality improvement culture, placing Fundación Favaloro among Argentina's most rigorously assessed tertiary care hospitals.

The Foundation has also sought Joint Commission International (JCI) recognition, aligning its ambitions with the global benchmark for hospital quality applied by North American and European accreditation systems. This pursuit of JCI standards reflects the institution's determination to meet the highest international expectations of clinical excellence and patient safety management.

Universidad Favaloro, the institution's affiliated academic university, is accredited by Argentina's national higher education authority (CONEAU), ensuring that its medical graduates and postgraduate trainees meet national and international competency standards. The university produces physicians trained in the tradition of evidence-based, academically rigorous medicine that has always defined the Foundation's approach.

Fundación Favaloro's research output — with faculty publishing extensively in peer-reviewed cardiology, cardiovascular surgery, and transplantation journals internationally — further validates the institution's position as a center of scientific and clinical excellence recognized well beyond Argentina's borders. The Foundation's cardiac surgery mortality and complication rates are benchmarked against leading international centers, and results are shared transparently with accreditation authorities.