Bypass surgery of the coronary arteries has established itself as the generally accepted standard procedure for surgical treatment of coronary artery disease. At our Heart Centre Niederrhein, the internal thoracic wall arteries and the patient's own veins from the upper or lower leg are routinely used as bypass vessels. The vein is regularly prepared endoscopically and minimally invasive in order to minimize the rate of wound healing disorders and to achieve better cosmetic results.
In addition to this conventional coronary surgery procedure, the clinic offers a range of innovative therapies:
- In complete arterial myocardial revascularization, only arterial blood vessels are used to supply the coronary arteries. For this purpose, we use the left and right internal thoracic wall arteries and the left arm artery (radial artery). Due to their muscular wall structure, arteries are more stable in comparison to veins, can adapt better to the perfusion pressure and the required flow conditions and thus provide superior long-term functional efficiency.
- Bypass surgery with the minimized extracorporeal circulation "MECC": This variant uses a modern, smaller and more gentle heart-lung machine (HLM). This reduces the strain on the body, stabilizes kidney function and helps to avoid foreign blood donations.
- In the bypass surgery without a heart-lung machine (OPCAB = Off Pump Coronary Artery Bypass), the target vessels at the beating heart are displayed with the help of various stabilizers and thus supplied with bridging bypass vessels accordingly. Finally, the functionality of the bypasses is ensured by means of Doppler flow measurement. The OPCAB surgical procedure is associated with a lower risk of stroke and is particularly advantageous in repeat operations and in patients with calcification of the aorta.
- In the MIDCAB procedure (Minimally Invasive Direct Coronary Artery Bypass) as a minimal variant of the OPCAB technique, access to the heart is via an approximately 5 cm incision in the left anterior chest. This technique is used for isolated diseases of the coronary arteries of the anterior and lateral wall.
If you have any questions about the various alternative possibilities, please feel free to contact us at any time.