Type of Surgery
Information
Last updated: 11/24/2009
Coronary artery bypass graft surgery is a surgical procedure in which one or more blocked coronary arteries are bypassed by a blood vessel graft to restore normal blood flow to the heart. These grafts usually come from the patient's own arteries and...
veins located in the leg, arm, or chest.
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Provides an overview of the circulatory system including the blood vessels that supply the heart. When these coronary arteries become blocked, the vessels need to be bypassed with other blood vessels. The animation describes a coronary artery bypass graft surgery or CABG.
During a coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), the chest is opened to visualize the heart (A). A heart-lung machine takes over the function of the heart during the procedure. A portion of the saphenous vein of the leg is removed (B). This vessel is used to bypass a blockage of the coronary artery. It is attached from the aorta past the point of blockage (C). Another option is to bypass a blockage with the mammary artery (D). The bypass increases blood flow to the area served by the coronary artery (E). (Illustration by Argosy.)
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Other Information
Coronary artery bypass surgery, also coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and colloquially heart bypass or bypass surgery is a surgical procedure performed to relieve angina and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease. Arteries or veins from elsewhere in the patient's body are grafted to the coronary arteries to bypass atherosclerotic narrowings and improve the blood supply to the coronary circulation supplying the myocardium (heart muscle). This surgery is usually performed with the heart stopped, necessitating the usage of cardiopulmonary bypass; techniques are available to perform CABG on a beating heart, so-called "off-pump" surgery.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronary_artery_bypass_surgery
Other Information
Traditional Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) surgery has undesirable side effects that range from cognitive loss to increased hospital stays that are believed to be related to artificial heart pumps. In this project, we believe that if the heart were able to beat freely during surgery, these pumps would not be needed and it is possible that these side effects might be lessened.
-M. Cenk Cavusoglu
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