Week 6: You Guessed It, More Surgeries!

Hi all! I hope everyone had a terrific spring break!

This week is going to be a bit of a game changer... literally. But before I get into that, I want to talk a bit about the surgeries I watched this week. This post is going to be quite short, but the next two will not disappoint, trust me.

This week, I watched an on-pump CABG and a right thoracotomy. I want to talk about the process of harvesting the left internal mammary artery (LIMA) for use in bypass.

The LIMA supplies the anterior (the front) chest wall and breast to the left of the sternum. It originates at the Subclavian artery right under the clavicle and runs down right past the sixth intercostal space (space between the sixth and seventh ribs) before it splits into two terminal branches.

Subclavian Artery

This particular artery can withstand being used as a graft for a vessel as important as the left anterior descending coronary artery. It is a better choice for the LAD because it can support blood flow at a higher pressure. This is why a saphenous vein graft may not be the best option.  

Removing the LIMA

Once the desired length is achieved, the distal (further from center of body)
end of the artery will be clipped off and the proximal part will be used as a graft for the LAD.

In my next post, I will talk briefly about the independent research project that I mentioned in previous posts. Next week (finally!) I will go into detail about what the next six weeks have in store for you all!