A new era in “Bypass” cardiac surgeries in Greece

With the Mini-Bypass method, the large incisions in the upper and lower extremities that were made for the preparation of the arterial and venous grafts, respectively, are eliminated. As well as the large incisions that troubled the patients post-operatively, but also made them aesthetically displeasing.

“Bypass surgery, the most common heart surgery in adults, is the surgical treatment of coronary artery disease, the disease that manifests itself when the blood vessels that supply the heart (coronary vessels) are blocked to a significant extent. The result can be either acute, like the well-known “myocardial infarction”, or develop gradually, causing chest pain and/or shortness of breath and have serious and/or fatal complications.

The treatment of the disease must be immediate as soon as it is diagnosed, either with an operation, or even with medication, when the operation is not possible”, says Mr. Theofilos Kolettis, Thoracic Surgeon – Interventional Cardiac Surgeon at Metropolitan General, Specialized in relatives and acquired diseases of young and middle-aged adults, Director London Heart and Chest Hospital.

Bypass operation is the most radical and effective long-term treatment, especially in younger and middle-aged patients, with multiple or very central lesions in the coronary vessels, as well as in those suffering from diabetes mellitus.

In recent years, the operation of angioplasty has become more popular, with which the vessel is opened with a balloon and a stent is placed inside. This is mainly because most patients fear surgery and prefer the easiest solution. But that doesn’t mean they always make the best choice.

Now the Mini-Bypass comes to change the facts. First, because it is performed only with a small incision of a few centimeters in the center of the chest. The other incisions in the leg and arm used to prepare the grafts are eliminated. Grafts are prepared endoscopically – without incisions – with the EVH: Endoscopic vein harvesting and ERH: Endoscopic Radial Harvesting method, using a camera and special tools, just as thoracoscopic and laparoscopic operations are done.

The operation of the Mini-bypass inside the heart is no different from the classic one: a new blood supply network of the heart is formed that bypasses the narrowed-blocked coronary vessels with the vessels taken as grafts. The new blood supply network created with the grafts is a healthy – without pathological strictures – network of vessels with a long life time, corresponding to the expected life time of the patient. This is why it is always the treatment of choice in young patients.

“With the Fast-Track recovery protocol applied to patients undergoing mini-bypass, the total hospital stay is only 4 days.

The Mini-Bypass operation combined with the Fast-Track recovery protocol is the best surgical treatment and the treatment of choice for young and middle-aged adults with early coronary disease because it has the best long-term results, the shortest hospital stay, the smaller incision and risk of complications below 1%”, concludes Mr. Kolettis.

Written by:

Mr. Theofilos Kolettis, Thoracic Surgeon – Interventional Cardiac Surgeon at Metropolitan General

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