The importance of looking for the best heart surgery hospital in Bangalore – and in India in general – has been increasing in the past decades. The need for the best surgeons has increased because, over the past century, cardiovascular diseases have become one of the leading causes of mortality in India. Looking for the best surgeons and hospitals isn’t as important as knowing the patient’s diseases and specific needs.
Most cardiovascular diseases (or CVDs) do not require the patient to be opened up. Most CVDs can be prevented by making healthy lifestyle choices or can be treated through medications.
The most prominent CVDs that claim multiple lives in India, however, may require more complex procedures. These diseases include aneurysms, stroke, and ischemic heart disease, which would, in some cases, necessitate complex heart surgery.
Specific heart problems require specific treatments or surgical solutions. Therefore, identifying the severity of the condition and the proper procedure would help patients decide which would be the best heart surgery institution for their case. As the old saying goes, “knowing is half the battle.”
Cardiovascular Diseases in India
The five most prominent cardiovascular diseases in India are ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, rheumatic heart disease, hypertensive heart disease, and cardiomyopathy. Other CVDs such as aortic aneurysms and atrial fibrillations are also widespread.
Most of these can be avoided by eating a heart-healthy diet and committing to a healthy lifestyle. Those at risk of having these diseases often eat cholesterol-heavy food, lack exercise, smoke tobacco, or are sleep deprived.
Nevertheless, some people can lead healthy lives but still contract CVDs. Despite being known as a technological hub of India, Bangalore is also a hub of great heart surgeons. This makes looking for the best heart surgery hospital in Bangalore a less daunting task for patients.
The Different Types of Heart Surgery
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Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting
Also known as CABG, this procedure involves the surgeon taking a vein or artery from another part of the patient’s body. The vein or artery is then connected to the heart to supply blood past the blocked artery, which creates a new path for blood flow.
This procedure is used to solve ischemic heart disease and hypertensive heart disease if medications are not advisable.
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Pacemaker Insertion
Pacemakers are little devices that regulate the heartbeat. This device is inserted under the skin to make the heartbeat normal and increase the heart’s blood flow.
Pacemakers are used for patients with arrhythmia – the condition of having irregular heartbeats. Arrhythmia causes the heart to stop the proper blood supply, leading to fatigue and shortness of breath.
Pacemakers are also used on patients with severe cases of hypertensive heart disease.
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Heart Valve Repair
The valves of the heart prevent the backward flow of blood. However, these could sometimes get damaged and require replacement.
Heart surgeons would replace the patient’s heart valves with artificial ones or with biological ones made with either humans’, pigs’, or cows’ heart tissue. This procedure is sometimes done for patients with rheumatic heart disease.
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Septal Myectomy
This is done specifically for patients with cardiomyopathy. Cardiomyopathy is the thickening of the heart muscles, or in worse conditions, the scarring of the heart itself.
The septum is what separates the heart’s bottom right and left chambers. With cardiomyopathy, the patient’s septum thickens. The surgeon removes the extra muscles from the septum, which allows smoother blood flow.
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Aneurysm Repair
Aneurysms are bulges or balloons created in arteries. These balloons are formed due to the blood pressure pushing on the weakened walls of blood vessels, causing them to swell.
To repair the aneurysm, the doctors will replace the artery or heart wall with a patch or a graft.
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Heart Transplant
Perhaps the most well-known heart surgery due to its popularity in medical shows and drama, a heart transplant is the transferring of the whole heart from a deceased donor to the recipient. Usually, this is done for patients with severe heart diseases. The conditions that usually lead to heart transplants are cardiomyopathy, coronary artery disease, advanced heart failure, and arrhythmia.
By the turn of the century, cases of cardiovascular diseases have increased to the point that it has become the leading cause of death in India.
Patients with CVDs should first know what to do to avoid worsening their condition and determine the appropriate treatment for their illness. Often, open heart surgeries are the last resort, as medications are widely available and have fewer risks.
Thankfully, despite being known for its advanced technology, parks, and nightlife, Bangalore is filled with good cardiologists, heart surgeons, and heart institutions. This should give patients peace of mind knowing that the best heart surgeries aren’t hard to find.
