The coronary artery bypass graft surgery is one of the several major advances in the effort to manage the cardiovascular disease which is one of the leading cause of death and disability in the US. It is also referred as a bypass surgery or simply a CABG (Coronary Artery Bypass Graft).
This surgery is used to treat the heart attacks and serious chest pain caused by blockages in the arteries which supply blood to the heart muscle. The surgeon will attach the blood vessel taken from elsewhere in the body to the diseased heart artery, reroute the blood around the bloackge and a double, triple or quadruple bypass will refer to the number of heart arteries which are bypassed.
Benefits of CABG
There are many benefits for patient who have serious cardiovascular disease as it can save their life if you they have a heart attack or if they are at higher risk of having one. CABG is highly effective to eliminate or reduce the discomfort if you have an ongoing angina and experience shortness of breath due to diseased heart arteries. It can give you your life back.
Why do some people require coronary bypass surgery instead of stent placement?
There are some situations in which the coronary bypass surgery is better than stents and also better than the medical therapy. These are situations in which the blockage is in one of the artery that is the main artery to the entire heart calleas as the left main coronary artery. Therefore, if you have a significant blockage to that artery, then the standard of care is CABG.
There are other situations which mimic and sometimes called as left main equivalent stenosis or blockages. In these cases, most cardiac surgeons and cardiologist agree that coronary artery bypass surgery is superior to stents.
However, it is a controversial field and this is constantly evolving as surgery gets bettwe and the stents too get better. Therefore, we will have to constantly evaluate individuality of each patient to determine which is best for the patient’s situation.
What can patients do in preparation for coronary bypass surgery?
First of all, once you have done the due diligence of choosing your surgeon and your cardiologist, ensure to feel comfortable and relaxed. Although, it is a big operation, this is routine for the vast majority of heart surgeons since they do all the time and many of their patients do extremely well.
As far as preparation for coronary bypass surgery is concerned, if you are a smoker, you should better not smoke. If you are overweight, it will be better if you are not and in general, patients even with those behaviours will do well. You should follow the advice of your cardiologist and internist and have confidence in the surgeon you have chosen to get your surgery and move ahead with your decision and you will be fine.
Low Cost CABG Surgery in India
India is the most cost effective medical tourism destination in the world offering low cost CABG surgery. The cost of CABG surgery in India is very low compared to the cost of similar procedures in the West. This also applied to the treatments and surgeries related to the coronary bypass surgery even after adding travel and accommodation costs, etc. to the medical treatment package in India. The overall cost of treatment package for coronary bypass surgery in India is about 50 to 80 percent low and this is the reason why many international medical tourists prefer to get the highest quality CABG surgery in India.
