• Shortness of breath upon exertion
• Chest pains, tightness
• Dizziness
• Feelings of Nausea and Sweats

As the arteries surrounding the heart continue to close, blood supply needed by the heart muscle to function is reduced or blocked altogether. When this happens, a heart attack occurs. Bypass surgery is the procedure where arteries that are partially or completely blocked (shown as the black areas) are bypassed from an area of the artery where the artery is open and a piece of vein or artery from another part of the patient's body (shown in white) are sewn around the areas of blockage, thereby "bypassing" the arteries and restoring blood flow to the heart muscle.

Pre-Operative Work-up
Patients should see their family doctor or cardiologist if they have any of the symptoms mentioned above. The typical work-up and testing that a patient would undergo before a determination of Bypass surgery is made include:

• Cardiac Catheterization
• Chest X-Ray
• Lab Work-up
• EKG
• History and Physical
• Referral from medical doctor

Normal Course of Treatment
After all preoperative testing has been completed and reviewed by the surgeon, patients scheduled for elective bypass surgery arrive at the hospital the morning of surgery. The surgery is usually completed in 3 to 5 hours. Patients are then taken to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) where they typically stay less than 24 hours. After their SICU stay, patients are transferred to the cardiac care unit where they begin active rehabilitation. They are usually discharged in 4 to 5 days.
Patients are requested to follow-up with their surgeon in six weeks when a determination of "return to daily activities" is made.