Endoscopic vessel harvesting (EVH)
EVH stands for Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting. During a Coronary Bypass procedure, one or more healthy blood vessels will be taken (or “harvested”) from the patient’s leg, arm or chest to be used as “new” vessels for bypass grafts. There are three techniques for harvesting a vessel from the arm or leg for a CABG procedure: open, bridging and EVH. EVH uses special instruments to view and remove a blood vessel with less trauma to the vessel or to surrounding tissues than bridging or an “open” procedure.
About EVH
EVH is minimally invasive and uses special instruments to view and remove the blood vessel. EVH usually requires one small incision about 2 cm long. The EVH procedure is performed at the beginning of heart surgery and can be used for the following vessels:
- The greater saphenous vein, which runs the length of the leg
- The radial artery, which runs from the wrist to the elbow in the arm
Benefits of EVH
There is generally little patient discomfort from endoscopic vessel harvesting, especially when compared to open or bridging procedures. In clinical studies, some important benefits have been shown in EVH including:
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