About This Procedure
What is vessel harvesting?
If you are scheduled for coronary artery bypass surgery, your surgeon will need to harvest healthy blood vessels from another part of your body — often the chest, leg, or arm — to create the bypass graft. The saphenous vein, which runs along the inside of your leg, has a thick wall and is well suited for use on your heart.
Traditionally, removing the saphenous vein required a long incision the length of your leg. With Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting (EVH), surgeons make a series of smaller incisions and use an endoscope connected to a camera to view and remove the vein. Because the incisions are much smaller, muscle and tissue damage is minimized, and complications are reduced.
Who Is a Candidate ?
Patients we typically evaluate for EVH.
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CABG patients needing grafts
Patients scheduled for coronary artery bypass surgery.
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Saphenous vein candidates
Patients whose saphenous vein is suitable for harvest.
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Patients prioritizing cosmesis
Smaller, less visible scarring than traditional harvest.
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Higher infection-risk patients
Diabetic or other patients who benefit from reduced wound exposure.