Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery, Critical Illness Insurance

There are some shocking figures about coronary artery bypasses. It has been found according to the National Health Service NHS that approximately every year 28,000 people with in the United Kingdom undergo a form of coronary artery bypass surgery or a graft. The information collated has shown that out of the 28,000 people a year, almost 80% of them will be men and over the age of 60 years old.

Typically this kind of procedure - coronary heart bypass surgery is needed to help treat people with heart disease and ultimately to reduce the risk of a heart attack. Sometimes this procedure is done after an emergency i.e. a heart attack and in others the treatment is preventative treatment.

One of the main reasons for an individual needing a coronary artery bypass is because they have one or even more blockages in their arteries. This means the blockages are cutting off and reducing the flow of bloods around the body. This is very dangerous for the individual. Should for what ever reason the blood be unable to flow around the body and prevent the heart from pushing it around it can end up in a potentially serious outcome for this person. When the blood goes around the body it carries oxygen through its flow which is then provided to the vital organs of the body. If this flow is restricted or stopped at any point it can affect the vital organs such as the heart, brain and lungs from operating efficiently. This may cause them to shut down and begin to die off.

When a patient undergoes a artery bypass a graft will need to be taken. A graft is a blood vessel that is taken from another part of the body. This could be from the individual's leg or chest. The graft is then used to replace the blocked or damaged artery. Once this has been done the blood will then be able to flow properly. Typically when graft surgery is going ahead, the surgeon will perform several grafts to ensure the patient doesn't need repeat surgery.

If you were to undergo any form of bypass surgery the patients vital organs etc will typically be supported by machines. This is so that the body can remain functioning during the surgery. There is also a procedure which has been proven to increase the success and survival rates amongst these types of patients. This is called a cooling technique. This is where the doctor lowers the patient's body temperature during the operation, to then increase it back to normal once the surgery has finished.

Should anyone you know ever need to have a coronary artery bypass operation you will need to be aware that as it is such a major operation, the individual will need to be put on to a heart-lung machine as the heart is stopped during the operation. This is to ensure that they are kept alive. The patient will need to remain in hospital for about two weeks after the operation with a short stay in intensive care immediately after surgery. This is to safe guard the patient from infections and other diseases whilst they are so vulnerable.