Section 1: Your Incisions: What to Expect
You will have at least two incision sites after CABG surgery:
CHEST
Sternal incision
A vertical line down the center of your chest, typically 6–10 inches long. This is where the surgeon divided your breastbone (sternum) to access your heart. It is closed with stainless steel wires beneath the skin and sutures or staples on the surface.
LEG
Leg incision(s)
If a vein was harvested from your leg for the bypass grafts, you will have one or more incisions along the inside of your calf, knee, or thigh. These may be a single long incision or several shorter incisions depending on the harvesting technique used.
FOREARM
Radial artery incision
Some patients also have a small incision on the inside of the forearm if the radial artery was used as a graft.
NORMAL HEALING
What normal healing looks like
- Mild redness directly at the incision edges in the first 1–2 weeks (redness that is spreading away from the incision is not normal)
- Bruising around the incisions that gradually fades
- Swelling at and around the incision sites, particularly the leg
- Itching as the wound heals — this is a sign of healing, not infection
- Firmness or a ridge under the sternal incision as scar tissue forms
- Some numbness around the incisions — small nerves are disrupted during surgery and sensation returns slowly over weeks to months