Early results of complete off-pump coronary revascularization using left internal thoracic artery with composite radial artery

Composite arterial grafting

The success of coronary artery bypass grafting, the gold standard for the treatment of multivessel coronary artery disease, is limited by poor long-term vein-graft patency. By contrast, the left internal mammary artery has been demonstrated to have a superior graft patency rate and has provided excellent clinical results. This suggests that the use of arterial conduits for coronary artery bypass grafting may be beneficial for long-term results. Recently, there has been an upsurge in the use of arterial grafts for myocardial revascularization based on the clinical advantage of the use of the left internal mammary artery as a bypass conduit. Many retrospective studies have supported the safety and the effectiveness of arterial grafting, and it has become apparent that the free arterial graft can be used as a branched or a lengthened conduit to the in situ arterial graft by adopting one or more of the several composite grafting techniques. Arterial composite grafts with or without sequential grafting techniques appear an attractive strategy as increased number of distal coronary anastomoses can be performed, with a limited number of grafts, avoiding proximal aortic anastomoses. However, concerns regarding the total dependence of the coronary bypass flow on the flow of one in situ arterial graft and technical error, resulting in compromised flow in one or both limbs of the composite graft have prevented composite arterial grafting from being universally adopted. It is expected that in the near future a prospective, multi-institutional, randomized controlled trial, to compare the short- and long-term outcomes of exclusive arterial grafting using composite and conventional aortocoronary revascularization strategies, will be undertaken to validate the safety and efficacy of composite arterial grafting.

Foldback technique for aortic anastomosis of free right internal thoracic artery in coronary artery bypass grafting

We herein report a new technique that we term "foldback plasty" for stenosis-free proximal anastomosis of free arterial grafts without using any other interposition materials. The arterial graft is first anastomosed to the aorta in side-to-side fashion, leaving 1 cm of remnant tissue at the proximal end. The reverse side of the graft is then opened longitudinally, starting at the proximal end, to just distal to the aortic anastomosis site. The new proximal graft flap is folded back and sutured onto the graft to close the longitudinal opening. The proximal anastomosis site is enlarged only by the graft tissue, and stenosis can be avoided even if the graft has a small caliber.

Coronary artery bypass grafting using an abdominal artery as an inflow

BACKGROUND

In multiple bypass surgery, when the ascending aorta cannot be used as an inflow, it is sometimes necessary to use an abdominal artery. This technique is useful when a re-median sternotomy might damage a patent graft in patients undergoing reoperations or when the gastroepiploic artery is unsuitable for use as a graft.

METHODS

The subjects were 17 patients in whom an abdominal artery was used as an inflow. In these 17 patients, 9 underwent surgery for the first operation, while 8 underwent surgery for the reoperation. As an inflow, the gastroduodenal artery was used in 8 patients, the common hepatic artery in 4 patients, the left gastric artery in 3 patients, the right gastric artery in 1 patient, and the middle colic artery in 1 patient. The target coronary artery was the right posterior descending artery in 13 patients, the atrioventricular artery in 2 patients, and the circumflex artery in 4 patients. Sequential bypass was performed on 2 patients.

RESULTS

None of the patients died during surgery. Symptoms disappeared postoperatively in all patients; postoperative angiography showed that all grafts were patent.

CONCLUSIONS

The present technique is useful when the ascending aorta cannot be used as an inflow or when a bypass to a region with a large perfusion area is needed in multiple bypass surgery.

Off-Pump, In Situ Internal Thoracic Artery Grafting: A Durable Treatment for Single-Vessel Coronary Artery Disease

BACKGROUND

The value of off-pump in situ left internal thoracic artery to left anterior descending coronary artery bypass grafting in single-vessel coronary artery disease was assessed by long-term angiographic and clinical data.

METHODS

One-hundred three randomly selected patients (87 male, 16 female; mean age, 57.4 +/- 10.5 years) underwent postoperative angiographic control after an average postoperative period of 4.8 +/- 2.9 years (up to 8.2 years; a total of 490 patient-years).

RESULTS

Fifty-five patients (52%) were asymptomatic, whereas 31 (30%) had anginalike chest pain. Ninety-seven patients (94.2%) were in New York Heart Association class I or II. Five-year angina-free survival was 81% +/- 5%. Of 103 left internal thoracic arteries assessed, 99 were patent (overall patency, 96.1%). All four cases having occluded grafts had mild native vessel stenoses (<80%) before operation. The patency rate was 99% +/- 1% at 3 years, and 93% +/- 4% at 5 years. The left ventricular segmental wall motion score of the left anterior descending coronary arterial distribution improved from 4.1 +/- 1.1 to 3.7 +/- 0.9 (p = 0.001). Consequently, 15 patients (15%) underwent secondary revascularization (11 interventional and 4 surgical) 4.8 +/- 2.1 years after the primary operation. The most frequent indication for interventional revascularization was atherosclerotic progression in systems other than left anterior descending artery. The cases with graft occlusion were treated surgically. Five-year freedom from interventional or surgical repeat revascularization was 91% +/- 4%.

CONCLUSIONS

In addition to the well-documented safety and reliability, off-pump in situ left internal thoracic artery grafting is also a durable treatment for isolated left anterior descending artery disease, in both clinical and angiographic terms.

Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting: Long-Term Angiographic Results

OBJECTIVE

Although short-term results of off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting are well documented, late postoperative data are still scarce. This report provides an analysis of late postoperative control angiograms.

METHODS

265 patients (231 males, 34 females; mean age: 54 +/- 10) underwent postoperative angiographic control, after an average postoperative period of 4.2 +/- 2.3 years (up to 9 years, a total of 1110 years). A total of 385 distal anastomoses on 258 internal mammary arteries (IMAs) and 127 saphenous vein grafts (SVGs) were evaluated. The primary operation was single bypass in 156 cases (62%), double bypass in 98 (34%), and triple or more bypass in 11 (4%).

RESULTS

Out of 258 IMAs, 241 were patent (93%), while SVG patency was 65% with 82 patent grafts out of 127 (p < 0.0001). The patency in the lateral branches (62%) and right coronary system (64%) were similar. The variables associated with graft occlusion were hypercholesterolemia (p = 0.02), poor left ventricular performance (p = 0.03), reoperation (p = 0.01), target coronary vessel caliber less than 1.5 mm (p < 0.0001), poor native coronary vessel quality (p = 0.0003) and low-grade stenosis (p = 0.02). In the poor left ventricle group, the left ventricular segmental wall motion score was improved (p = 0.004). Consequently, 47 patients underwent secondary revascularization (35 PTCA and 12 CABG). The leading indication was native coronary artery disease progression, frequently in the circumflex system, followed by graft failure. The cases with native vessel disease progression were referred to PTCA/stenting, while those with LAD graft occlusion were treated surgically.

CONCLUSIONS

Probably the best candidates for OPCAB are those having target vessels of good caliber and quality, and high-grade stenoses. Postoperative lipid-lowering therapy seems to be prudential.

Rationale of off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting for left main trunk disease

OBJECTIVE

Off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) remains controversial in patients with left main trunk (LMT) disease because of a concern about the ability to tolerate hemodynamic instability. This study examined the safety of OPCAB for LMT disease compared with conventional coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).

METHODS

Between April 1997 and December 2002, 257 consecutive patients with LMT stenosis who underwent CABG were enrolled. There were 98 patients who received CABG with the aid of cardiopulmonary bypass (CCAB group), and 159 patients who received OPCAB (OPCAB group).

RESULTS

There was no patient who converted to on-pump intraoperatively due to hemodynamic instability. Both intraoperative blood loss and blood transfusion incidence were lower in the OPCAB group. Postoperative course was similar, however, pulmonary complications were less observed postoperatively in the OPCAB group. No hypoperfusion syndrome was seen postoperatively in both groups. The average number of anastomosis was 3.2+/-1.1 in the CCAB group and 3.2+/-1.0 in the OPCAB group (p=0.645). Total arterial OPCAB with an aorta no-touch technique was achieved in 142 patients (89.3%) in OPCAB group. Postoperative angiography was performed in 95 patients in CCAB (96.9%), and in 141 patients in OPCAB (89.8%). Although graft patency of arterial grafts was good in both groups (100% in CCAB and 98.3% in OPCAB), saphenous vein graft patency was slightly lower in both groups (93.4% in CCAB and 76.5% in OPCAB) compared with arterial grafts.

CONCLUSION

OPCAB allows a safe and effective treatment of LMT disease.