definitions

coronary bypass surgery

A surgical procedure to restore normal blood supply to the heart by creating new routes for the blood to travel into the heart when one or both of the coronary arteries have become clogged or obstructed (possibly due to atherosclerosis). These new routes are created by removing blood vessels from another part of the body (most often the veins of the leg) and grafting them onto the heart to bypass the clogged arteries.

RELATED CONTENT

What Are “Season’s Greetings”?There's nothing like sitting down to fill out the holiday cards and realizing you're not quite sure what to do with your apostrophe. Do you wish your friends and family season's greetings? Or, should it be seasons' greetings?
READ MORE
Electoral CollegeRead more in this article about some frequently asked questions and fun facts related to our definitions.
READ MORE

Nearby words

coronary, coronary arteries, coronary artery, coronary artery disease, coronary bypass, coronary bypass surgery, coronary care unit, coronary cataract, coronary cushion, coronary failure, coronary heart disease

Note

Often, people will call this kind of surgery a double, triple, or quadruple bypass, referring to the number of diseased coronary arteries that had to be bypassed during the operation.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.