BYPASS (CORONARY ARTERY BYPASS GRAFT)

Coronary artery disease develops because of hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis) that supply blood to the heart muscle. Diagnostic tests include EKG, stress test, echocardiography, and coronary angiography. Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery is advised for selected groups of patients with significant narrowings and blockages of the heart arteries (coronary artery disease) to create new routes around narrowed and blocked arteries, permitting increased blood flow to deliver oxygen and nutrients to the heart muscles. The bypass graft for a CABG can be a vein from the leg or an inner chest wall artery. CABG surgery is performed about 350,000 times annually in the United States, making it one of the most commonly performed major operations.