Coronary Bypass Complications

[Goodwitch50]

My husband had heart bypass surgery in 1995. (Triple)  They attempted another triple bypass in 2008.  The heart had adheared to the chest wall with scar tissue and the surgeon couldn't free it to rotate to do the bypasses needed.  All hope of survival was minimal.  We are now 4 years down the line and one of the original bypass veins is failing.  (Structure of vessel is giving out???)  I don't know if this was a leg vein or mammory arterie as they used both in the original surgery.  

What is the average time frame for these vessels to function once they have reached this point?

[Goodwitch50]

Thanks for your response.  This is a very scary time.

Yes he has gotten significantly worse.

They haven't given me that specific information.  I guess I need to get a consult and ask these questions.  My husband doesn't want to listen to it since there are any proceedure options available to him.  I have to be very careful when asking my questions when he is present.  He just wants to have a positive outlook.

[ed34]

Do you have any more info, about where the blockages are? and where the grafts were placed?

[ed34]

That is what normally happens to a vein, it simply collapses. They couldn't even see mine on an angiogram, it took a ct scan to find them.
As for the prognosis, it's difficult to say. If he had a triple bypass as you say, then the usual procedure is to put the LIMA (left internal mammary artery) to the bottom of the LAD, and a Vein further up the same vessel. The third vein would have been for a different vessel, probably a Diagonal or maybe the left circumflex. If the LIMA is still open, then a good feed will still be getting into the LAD.
When my veins collapsed, it was a sudden thing, not gradual, and I remember when it was. I had to convince my surgeon that something had gone wrong. It turned out that my surgeon made a very stupid mistake, he grafted my Lima onto the blockage, so the blood couldn't go anywhere. IF he had grafted it below the blockage, then I wouldn't have noticed the veins closing. Has your husband suddenly felt worse?

[Goodwitch50]

Apparently this vessel (Not mammory artery, but one of the vessels harvested from the thigh) isn't blocked, but has lost it's structure. "flopping" Cannot stint because of the condition of the vessel. As I stated the original bypass was performed in 1995.  I know his prognosis has been very bad since the last surgery.  When I was informed about this recent degradation I became alarmed this means we have a VERY Limited time left. Is this an accurate assessment of the information I have been given?

[ed34]

A vein can last anywhere from a few weeks to many years. The mammary artery should last the rest of your natural life, but it can develop blockages like any other artery. However, the mammary arteries tend to block far less than coronary arteries. If it causes problems, then perhaps they could consider using angioplasty on the original native artery with the blockages.