Cardiovascular surgery is a medical specialty that uses surgical techniques to treat cardiac pathologies that cannot be addressed with drugs or minor procedures. The goal is typically to reduce symptoms and improve quality of life, rather than provide a complete resolution, through techniques like bypass surgery and heart valve repair/replacement. Bypass surgery involves using veins or arteries to create a vascular bridge around a blocked artery and restore blood flow. Valve surgery repairs or replaces diseased valves to improve blood flow through the heart. Heart transplantation may be recommended to treat severe angina, heart failure, congenital heart defects, or potentially fatal heart rhythm issues, but is not advised for patients over age 60 or with certain comorbidities.