Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) at CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla
A blocked artery in the heart is serious, and many people first hear the word "bypass" in a worried moment. CritiCare Asia Hospitals, a heart hospital in Mumbai, explains what the surgery involves in plain, simple terms. CABG stands for coronary artery bypass grafting, and it sends blood around a blocked artery of the heart. The coronary arteries are the blood vessels that feed the heart muscle. Our surgeons perform heart bypass surgery in Kurla, Mumbai, after studying each patient's angiography reports.
What Bypass Surgery Does
The surgeon takes a healthy blood vessel from another part of the body and uses it as a detour. This vessel, called a graft, is usually a vein from the leg or an artery from the chest wall or arm. It is joined above and below the blocked section, so blood flows around the blockage. The blockage itself stays in place. Angioplasty is different, because a balloon and often a stent (a small mesh tube) open the artery from inside. Doctors choose between the two based on where the blockages are. Patients considering coronary bypass surgery in Kurla can ask the team to explain this choice using their own reports.
Symptoms That Can Lead to a Bypass
Coronary artery disease often builds quietly. These symptoms usually lead to tests, and sometimes to surgery:
Chest pain or pressure, often while walking or climbing stairs
Breathlessness during ordinary tasks
Unusual tiredness
Pain spreading to the arm, jaw or back
Sweating or dizziness along with chest discomfort
Chest pain that does not ease with rest needs emergency care without delay.
When Doctors Advise CABG
A cardiologist suggests CABG surgery in Kurla when angiography, a scan that shows the arteries with the help of dye, finds one of these:
Several coronary arteries that are significantly blocked
A blockage in the left main coronary artery, which supplies a large share of the heart muscle
Blockages in positions or shapes that do not suit stenting
Earlier angioplasty that did not give lasting relief
Our cardiologists in Kurla go through these findings with the patient and family before any decision is made.
Getting Ready for Surgery
Angiography confirms the exact place and severity of each blockage. A fitness assessment and blood tests follow. Blood thinners and similar medicines are often adjusted in the days before surgery to lower the risk of bleeding.
The Day of Surgery
General anaesthesia is used throughout. In minimally invasive CABG, the surgeon works through an incision between the ribs. The heart is held steady with a special device instead of a heart-lung machine, and medicine may slow the heart rate for part of the procedure. A drainage tube is placed in the chest and is usually removed within a day or two.
Recovery in Hospital
Patients go to intensive care first for close monitoring, wound care and chest tube management, and then move to a general ward.
Pain relief is matched to the incision used, since recovery after a full chest opening differs from a smaller incision
Supervised movement starts early, which lowers the risk of clots and chest problems from lying in bed
Breathing exercises help the lungs recover
Getting Back to Routine
Recovery happens in stages: hospital monitoring, wound healing, a slow return to daily activity and, later, clearance to drive and work. The pace depends on the type of CABG and the patient, so the cardiac specialist explains each stage rather than a fixed calendar. Longer-term care includes:
Graft life, which varies; internal mammary artery grafts generally last longer than vein grafts
Antiplatelet medicines (which stop clots forming) and statins (which slow fatty build-up), usually continued long term
A balanced diet, regular activity and no smoking
Cardiac rehabilitation, a supervised programme that rebuilds strength step by step
Risks to Know About
Every heart surgery carries risks, and we prefer to state them openly: blood clots, bleeding, breathing difficulty, heart attack, stroke, and temporary or lasting effects on memory and clarity of thought. Later problems can include wound infection, which is likelier in people with diabetes, obesity, or earlier bypass surgery; an irregular heartbeat; and postpericardiotomy syndrome, a mix of mild fever and chest pain that can last weeks to months. The specialist explains which risks matter most for each patient before surgery.
Treatment Options
Types of CABG:
On-pump (traditional), done with a heart-lung machine so the surgeon operates on a still heart
Off-pump, done on a heart that keeps beating, without the machine
Minimally invasive, done through a smaller cut between the ribs instead of opening the breastbone, for selected single or double-vessel blockages
Graft sources:
Internal mammary artery, from inside the chest wall
Saphenous vein, from the leg
Radial artery, from the forearm
The graft chosen affects how long the bypass works well, so the surgeon decides after checking the quality of the patient's vessels and the artery being bypassed.
CABG at CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla
The right technique depends on the patient. Our team reads the angiography reports closely and decides between on-pump, off-pump, and minimally invasive surgery. After the operation, intensive care tracking covers the critical early hours, and cardiac rehabilitation follows at the patient's own pace. Families are told the plan, the expected hospital stay, and how insurance claims are handled before surgery, so there are no surprises. To discuss your reports with a surgeon, book an appointment at CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla.