The effect of myocardial ischemia on internal mammary artery implant patency: a controlled experimental cineangiographic study

Refractory angina pectoris in end-stage coronary artery disease: evolving therapeutic concepts

Refractory angina pectoris in coronary artery disease is defined as the persistence of severe anginal symptoms despite maximal conventional antianginal combination therapy. Further, the option to use an invasive revascularization procedure such as percutaneous coronary balloon angioplasty or aortocoronary bypass grafting must be excluded on the basis of a recent coronary angiogram. This coronary syndrome, which represents end-stage coronary artery disease, is characterized by severe coronary insufficiency but only moderately impaired left ventricular function. Almost all patients demonstrated severe coronary triple-vessel disease with diffuse coronary atherosclerosis, had had one or more myocardial infarctions, and had undergone aortocoronary bypass grafting (70% of cases). We present three new approaches with antiischemic properties: long-term intermittent urokinase therapy, transcutaneous and spinal cord electrical nerve stimulation, and transmyocardial laser revascularization.

Long-term results of internal mammary artery implantation for coronary artery disease: a controlled trial by the participants of the Veterans Administration Coronary Bypass Surgery Cooperative Study Group

One hundred forty-six adult men from sixteen Veterans Administration hospitals were entered in a controlled prospective clinical trial. Seventy-one patients were randomly allocated to receive implantation of the internal mammary artery into the left ventricular myocardium for chronic ischemic heart disease with angina pectoris, and 75 were assigned to the control group. The two treatment groups were similar at baseline with respect to sixteen clinical and angiographic factors thought to have prognostic importance. Most of the patients were operated on before 1970. Operative mortality was 12%, and implant patency in 52% of eligible patients studied 1 year after operation was 67%. At the end of follow-up extending up to 12 years (mean, 9.3 years), cumulative survival for both groups was similar. Over half of the patients (58%) had died at the end of 10 years (5% per year). While the hypothesis on which the operation was based appears to be valid, the degree of revascularization achievable in most patients did not affect longevity.

Long-term follow-up of internal mammary artery myocardial implantation

A study was made of 100 patients who had undergone internal mammary artery myocardial implantation 7 to 10 years previously. Forty-two patients had single implantation with or without a free omental graft, and 54 received double implantations. Four patients had a single internal mammary artery implant plus a single aortocoronary bypass graft. Eleven patients died at operation or within the first month, and 17 died from 1 to 7 years following operation. Two were lost to follow-up, and 15 refused follow-up angiograms. From 7 to 10 years postoperatively, angiographic studies were performed on 55 patients with 73 internal mammary artery implants. Of these 73 implants, 17 (23%) were occluded; 10 (14%) were patent but did not show myocardial filling; 15 (21%) showed myocardial blush or filling of small vessels; and 31 (42%) showed filling of a major coronary artery. The patency rate correlated well with the amount of coronary disease and slightly with the amount of symptomatic improvement. This study shows that the Vineberg operation is physiologically sound; however, the ideal candidates are those patients with coronary arteries of adequate size who could benefit more by direct perfusion.

Determinants of flow through internal mammary artery implants

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