In a typical bypass, a patient is hooked to a heart-lung machine during surgery; this machine keeps your body breathing and your blood pumping while surgeons stop your heart, repair it and restart it. Off-pump or beating heart bypass does not stop the heart.

During beating heart bypass, surgeons use a special instrument to stabilize the heart. This allows them to safely stitch the new vessel into place – creating an alternate route around the blocked coronary artery. This surgical procedure is recommended for a select group of patients.