Coronary artery bypass graft surgery
Find a heart specialistIt can be frightening when you experience chest pain, blood clots or a heart attack due to blocked arteries. All you want is your heart to get back to working the way it should – and we’re here to help.
Our experienced heart surgeons perform coronary artery bypass grafting to treat coronary artery disease – a buildup of plaque in the heart’s arteries. This buildup can restrict blood flow to the heart and lead to chest pain and heart attack.
What is coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery?
Coronary artery bypass grafting surgery is an open heart surgery in which surgeons open the chest and breastbone to access the heart to create a new path for blood to reach your heart. It’s the most common type of open heart surgery.
If you have coronary artery disease, coronary bypass surgery makes a new path for blood to flow when the coronary arteries become blocked. These arteries are the main blood vessels that carry oxygen-rich blood to your heart muscle.
CABG may lower your risk of having a heart attack. It helps many people live without heart symptoms for 10 to 15 years after surgery. And at Aurora Health Care, we perform nearly 1,000 CABG procedures every year with excellent results.
What causes blocked arteries?
Coronary artery disease results from plaque – fatty deposits including cholesterol, fat, calcium and other substances – building up in the heart’s arteries.
Plaque develops as a result of damage to the inner layers of coronary arteries, which can be caused by:
- Abnormally high blood sugar levels due to diabetes
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- Inflammation in the coronary arteries
- Smoking
Over time, the coronary arteries harden and narrow, causing chest pain. If the plaque ruptures, blood clots can form at the injury site. A large clot can partially or completely block a heart artery, causing a heart attack.
Prior to surgery, you'll see your primary care doctor or cardiologist for personalized guidelines to prepare for surgery including:
- Refraining from eating or drinking anything after midnight the night before your procedure
- How to get ready for your procedure including any medications you may need to stop taking
- Answers to your questions and concerns
In most cases, the surgery takes three to five hours. Doctors can bypass one artery or multiple arteries during the same procedure.
To complete the bypass, the surgeon will:
- Remove a portion of a healthy vein or artery from another part of the body, such as the leg, chest or wrist
- Graft (attach) the new blood vessel to the coronary artery above and below the blockage. This new pathway lets blood flow normally to your heart again
- Check to make sure blood is flowing freely to the heart
You’ll spend a few days in an intensive care unit. Most likely you’ll stay in the hospital for four to six days after surgery. Be sure to arrange for someone to drive you home.
As part of your recovery, we recommend attending cardiac rehabilitation to regain your strength. This medically supervised program that offers extra support, education and coaching to get you on the right track.
Alternatives to CABG
Depending on your individual situation, we may be able to manage artery blockages in other ways. Alternative treatments include:
- Robotic surgery: Our surgeons use a robotic system to make tiny, precise movements through a very small incision.
- Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI): PCI, also known as coronary angioplasty, is a type of cardiac catheterization procedure. During this minimally invasive procedure, a doctor threads a catheter, or fine tube, through the blood vessels to clear blockages in the heart.
- Off-pump CABG: This alternative to traditional open heart surgery doesn’t require surgeons to stop the heart.
- Keyhole surgery: This CABG procedure can be done through a very small incision.
Placing your trust in our team
People from around eastern Wisconsin and northeastern Illinois choose our hospitals and clinics for our track record of safety and excellence. You can feel confident with our:
- National ranking: U.S. News & World Report consistently ranks our heart program among the best in the country. We’re dedicated to improving and transforming heart care.
- Collaborative care: Our surgeons and cardiologists work together as a team, and work with you to determine the best treatment plan.
- Outstanding results: Our success rates for CABG surgery are excellent. People who come to us for CABG very rarely have complications such as deep infection or stroke after surgery.
- History of innovation: A surgeon at Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center first devised the method of attaching the grafted blood vessel to the aorta to ensure better blood flow – the method that is used as standard practice today.
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