Bypass Grafting

Ocala Heart Institute, one of Florida’s top heart surgeon facilities, specializes in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) for patients with significant narrowing and/or blockage of the arteries (coronary artery disease) or in need of aneurysm repairs. When plaque (referred to as “atherosclerotic plaque”) builds up and attaches to the walls of the arteries, it slows the flow of blood as it circulates throughout the body. Coronary artery disease, or “hardening of the arteries”, is a serious condition that should never be ignored, because when a blood clot (thrombus) forms on top of the build-up, the blockage becomes complete, causing a heart attack.

A bypass usually requires open-chest surgery and the use of a heart-lung bypass machine, but newer, less invasive procedures may also be a choice, depending on individual condition. CABG surgery creates (or “bypasses”) new routes around blocked arteries to allow proper blood flow the heart needs for oxygen and nutrients by sewing grafted vessels (from the leg, forearm or mammary chest wall) to the coronary arteries beyond the narrowing or blockage. Triple, quadruple or even quintuple bypasses are now routine procedures. Surgeons usually perform the Dor procedure following CABG.

Recovery – Florida Heart Surgeons

Recovery may include physical, respiratory, and/or occupational therapy. Rehabilitation includes exercise, weight reduction and diet counseling, as well as controlling blood pressure, diabetes, and blood cholesterol levels.

Bypass surgery does not cure or slow coronary artery disease. Florida patients can still develop new blockages, especially those most at risk for plaque accumulation: smokers, those with high blood pressure or high cholesterol, diabetics, those with a family history of heart disease, and men over age 45 and women older than 55 years. Slowing the rate of atherosclerosis by reducing risk factors is vital to successful long-term results.

Florida Cardiovascular Care

We encourage you to call Ocala Heart Institute for the best Florida cardiovascular care. We’ll go over all test results with you step by step, explaining your options, why we think bypass surgery is the better choice over alternative treatment, and what to expect during and after surgery as well as treating you with the dignity and respect you deserve by treating the whole person to get to the “heart” of the problem.

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