What is a Coronary bypass graft?

A coronary artery bypass graft, (CABG) or Open Heart Surgery is done to maintain a flow of blood to your heart muscles by detouring around blocked coronary arteries. Coronary artery bypass surgery or open heart surgery will use a donor blood vessel from a different location of the same patient’s leg, chest, arms or abdomen. These are then connected as diversions around the blocked coronary arteries to restore blood flow to the heart muscle. Coronary artery disease starts when the coronary arteries get blocked with cholesterol and plaque deposits. If lifestyle changes, medication and angioplasty cannot control the disease then an open heart surgery becomes essential. CABG is just one of the different procedures done to treat coronary artery disease.

Coronary artery bypass surgery is a most important procedure with general anesthesia. The patient will be placed on a cardiopulmonary machine which will do the work of the heart and the lungs during the operation. As a result an experienced team of cardiac surgeons, cardiac anesthesiologists, cardiac surgery nurses, as well as a perfusion specialist, is necessary. Approximate time for the surgery can vary from 4 hours to 6 hours depending upon the number of grafts being put in.

Although the surgery is being performed quite regularly there is a risk of complications like continued bleeding, heart rhythm irregularities, infections, memory lapse, and strokes. Most patients do require a recovery period of at least 4-6 weeks before returning back to office work.

What Is a Coronary Angioplasty Surgery?

Coronary angioplasty surgery or per-cutaneous coronary interventions are surgeries to open up blocked heart blood vessels.

Although the heart is filled with blood 24 hours a day it only picks up its oxygen supply from a tiny cluster of vessels called as the coronary group of vessels. A high fat diet and no exercise, causes these tiny vessels to get clogged with fat. As a result, oxygen supply to the heart decreases. Continued blockages may cause the heart to stop working completely, resulting in a heart attack. For mild blockages, doctors usually recommend a lifestyle change, followed by cholesterol lowering drugs. Coronary angioplasty surgery becomes necessary to clear the blocked vessels for patients, who have already had a heart attack with gradually worsening symptoms.

Patients are admitted 24 hours before, in to the hospital. You will also have to stop certain medications like blood thinners, diabetes tablets, and nitroglycerines which may interfere with the procedure. A cardiologist with a special team of cardiovascular nurses will carry out the coronary angioplasty surgery in a cardiac catheterization laboratory. There is a mild risk of cardiac complications during the procedure. It’s necessary to do coronary angioplasty surgery in a hospital with surgical facilities to deal with any complications which arise. The procedure may take any where from 30 minutes to several hours to complete and a 3-4 days hospital stay is required.