Are you someone who is waiting for a heart surgery? Or, want to know more about it?

Well, Karetrip is here to walk you through what heart surgery is, why it's done, how to prepare for it, and what to expect during recovery.

Whether you're facing heart surgery or supporting someone who is, we're here to make things clear and help you feel informed. Let's explore together!

What is Heart Surgery?

Heart Surgery also known as cardiac surgery is a form of surgical procedure done to correct certain heart problems when normal medicines are found futile. These surgeries are done by cardiac surgeons and are usually done to treat various heart problems.

Let's go through all the things we need to know about heart surgeries

Types of Heart Surgeries:

• Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG): Also called Bypass Surgery, it is a procedure to improve the blood flow of the heart. It is usually done when the arteries that bring blood to the heart (Coronary Artery) are narrowed or blocked.

• Heart Valve Repair or Replacement: Heart has four valves, which helps pumping blood through the heart. When one or more of these valves stops working (diseased) due to infections or due to old age a Heart valve repair or replacement is needed depending on the condition of your heart.

• Heart Transplant: This is a procedure in which a failing heart is replaced with a healthy donor heart. Heart transplant is done in the cases where the condition of the heart is not improving even with medication or other surgeries.

• Aneurysm Repair: Also called traditional open surgery, it is a procedure to treat ‘aortic aneurysm’ which damages a person's aorta and causes complications that are life threatening. In this procedure the damaged part of the aorta is replaced with a synthetic fabric tube called ‘graft’

• Arrhythmia Surgery: Also known as Cardiac Ablation, it is a treatment for irregular heartbeats. It uses either hot or cold energy to make tiny scars in the heart which will help the heart to regain its normal rhythm.

• Congenital Heart Defect Repair: This is a heart disease that happens from birth and the surgery is done for such heart defects. Surgery is done when the defect can harm the child in long term or their well being.

Preparation for Heart Surgery

As we have seen there are different kinds of heart surgeries and we need to prepare according to them. Which means one person's experience while preparing for a surgery will be completely different from other persons. For instance some people will have time to prepare for their heart surgery but others need immediate procedures.

There will be a physical exam before your surgery where your blood test and heart tests are done. Through this the medical staff are able to understand about your health condition, the stability of your heart, if a surgery is needed or not, if yes what surgery it should be etc. Some of the heart tests you need to provide are:

• Cardiac catheterisation

• Coronary angiography

• Echocardiography

• Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG)

• Chest X-ray

Patients may also need to adjust their lifestyle and medication before surgery.

The Surgical Procedure:

• Heart Surgeries are typically done by highly trained doctors called cardiothoracic surgeons.

• A team of healthcare providers consisting of your surgeon, imaging specialist anesthesiologists, and nurses will be taking care of you throughout your surgical journey.

• Open heart surgery is the surgery in which the surgeon is needed to make a large cut in your chest to open the rib cage and operate your heart.

• In the case of this procedure you'll be given anesthesia, a medicine to make you unconscious and unaware of pain.

• During the surgery, you'll receive medicine to thin your blood and keep it from clotting. Your surgeon will connect a heart-lung bypass machine to your heart.

• The machine will take over your heart's pumping action and move blood away from your heart.

• This is done because surgeons can better perform some procedures on a heart that isn't beating and doesn't have blood flowing through it.

Recovery and Post-operative Care:

Your recovery depends on the surgical procedure you have undergone and your surgeon is the only person who can give you an exact estimate of your recovery period. But there are some general guidelines everyone can follow.

Post open heart surgeries need at least 4 to 5 days of recovery in the hospital itself. Once you are discharged it usually takes 6 to 8 weeks for the patient's breast bone and chest muscles to heal with proper rest and care while you return to your normal life.

Other things are to keep precautions after surgery such as

• Check your pulse regularly to understand if you have a normal heart beat rate

• Keep record of your weight a sudden weight gain after the surgery can be a sign of fluid retention which means your heart is not functioning properly

• Do not forget to take your prescribed medication after surgery , these medications contribute to the recovery of the patient

• Attend all the follow up appointments, since these are necessary to maintain the healthy condition of the heart and to monitor the heart.

• Always recognise warnings related to your body, if you are having chest pain which is not caused by the scar left after the surgery, nausea, vomiting, difficulty in breathing etc immediately check with the health care staff.

Risks and Complications:

Like any other major surgery, heart surgery also has its risks.

Your health care provider will go through with you about the procedures and risk factors before the surgery so you can make the final decision.

The risk of the procedure varies according to the heart problem, type of surgery, and your overall health.

Following are some of the risks that may happen:

• Arrhythmias which also means irregular heart beats

• Bleeding

• Blood clotting which can cause stroke

• Damage to the tissues including heart , kidneys, livers and lung

• Infection, fever and swelling

• Memory loss and other problems

• Pneumonia

Death is also a risk of heart surgery. However, heart surgery is more likely to be life-threatening in people who are very sick before the surgery.

Heart surgery is highly risky when it is done in an emergency, if you have other diseases or conditions such as diabetes, lung disease etc.

Outcomes

• Survey shows that there are significant improvements in symptoms and quality of life following heart surgery.

• Success rates depends on the the type of the surgery, patients health condition and the experience of the surgical team

• Long term outcomes require ongoing medical management, lifestyle changes and regular follow up care.

Heart surgery is a procedure to receive recovery from heart problems. Despite its risks, advance in technology and expert care makes surgeries more effective and safe.

With careful preparations, help from your healthcare team and attentive recovery, patients can experience improved health and quality of life.

With understanding the procedure , its risks, and following correct treatment and recovery procedure the patient can have a healthy post surgical experience.