The heart relies on coronary blood vessels to receive a steady supply of oxygen and nutrients to function. Coronary artery disease develops when coronary arteries get narrower and less blood can flow through them.
In bypass surgery, the surgeon creates a graft, a living artery or vein taken from another part of the body, which bypasses the flow of the blood around the clogged or blocked artery to the heart muscle, says MayoClinic.com. The amount of bypass or grafting required depends on the patient's health. A triple bypass surgery involves bypassing three coronary arteries.
Bleeding
Bleeding or hemorrhage is a major complication after coronary heart surgery, popularly known as bypass surgery. In triple bypass surgery, the surgeon replaces three diseased blood vessels. Bleeding may occur due to the damage to a major blood vessel at the site of incision or from the area of the heart in which surgery is performed. There are more chances of bleeding if the patient has a tendency to bleed or a history of abnormal bleeding. A blood transfusion may be needed in case of excess and uncontrolled bleeding, states eMedTV.
Acute Renal Failure
Acute renal failure, or ARF, following a triple bypass surgery is an unusual, but potentially fatal, postoperative complication. When it occurs, it affects all organ systems. ARF after a triple bypass surgery often accompanies sepsis due to acute tubular necrosis, notes The Indian Society of Nephrology. It is also attributed to patients with inadequate cardiac function.
Other factors that can contribute to gross renal shutdown include longer cardiopulmonary bypass and cross clamp time. In the majority of cases, these patients are assigned to receive early and intensive dialysis.
Stroke
Technological advances in modern coronary artery bypass surgery over the past decade have resulted in an improved patient outcome. However, perioperative stroke still remains one of the most feared complications of coronary bypass surgery, occurring in 1.4 to 4.3 percent of patients, according to the "Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery." Some common risk factors for perioperative stroke following a coronary bypass surgery may include, advanced age, peripheral vascular disease, diabetes and dialysis.
References
- Mayo Clinic: Treatments and Drugs
- eMedTV: Bleeding Following Beating Heart Bypass Surgery
- medIND: Acute Renal Failure Following Cardiac Surgery: Factors Predicting Mortality and Short Term Renal Prognosis
- Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery: Minimizing the Risk of Perioperative Stroke by Clampless Off-Pump Bypass Surgery: A retrospective Observational Analysis
