Intermediate
Technical
In the Industry Vocabulary Test
saphenous vein graft
Pronunciation: sa-FEE-nus vayn graft
A venous conduit harvested from the leg and used for coronary or peripheral arterial bypass procedures.
Full Definition
A surgical graft created using the patient's greater or lesser saphenous vein, commonly employed in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and peripheral arterial reconstruction. The saphenous vein is reversed to prevent valve-related flow obstruction when used as an arterial conduit. These grafts provide excellent initial patency but have higher long-term failure rates compared to arterial grafts due to intimal hyperplasia and accelerated atherosclerosis.
Usage
Usage note: Can be abbreviated as SVG in subsequent references within the same document.
In Context
- "The saphenous vein graft to the posterior descending artery showed good flow on completion angiography." — Operative report
- "Five years post-surgery, the saphenous vein graft demonstrated significant stenosis requiring intervention." — Follow-up catheterization report
Also known as
SVG
venous bypass graft
Contrasted with
arterial graft
synthetic graft
Don't confuse with
saphenous vein
mammary artery graft