Retrospective, observational analysis of cardiac function associated with global preoperative myocardial scar in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy after coronary artery bypass grafting.

Background: Drawing on accumulated patient data from a hospital database, the goal of this retrospective study was to analyze cardiac function associated with global preoperative myocardial scarring assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance with late gadolinium enhancement (CMR-LGE) in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM) after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Methods: A total of 57 patients diagnosed with ICM who underwent isolated CABG at Beijing Anzhen Hospital between September 2017 and September 2019 were enrolled in this retrospective study. All these patients underwent a preoperative CMR-LGE examination. Based on postoperative echocardiography results at 6 months, cases were divided into the following 2 groups: improved cardiac function [a difference of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) greater than or equal to 5%] and unimproved cardiac function. The factors contributing to these patients' unimproved cardiac function were investigated. Results: At 6 months after surgery, 64.9% (37/57) of cases had improved cardiac function, and 35.1% (20/57) had no improvement. There was no statistical difference between the 2 groups in the Synergy Between Percutaneous Coronary Intervention With Taxus and Cardiac Surgery (SYNTAX) score (41.7±7.6 vs. 42.8±8.3; P=0.603), but compared to the improved group, preoperative myocardial scarring was significantly enlarged in the unimproved group (41.9%±6.4% vs. 27.8%±8.5%; P<0.001). In regression analysis, only preoperative myocardial scarring [odds ratio (OR) =1.44; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.13-1.83; P=0.003] was associated with no change in cardiac function evaluated by echocardiography after CABG. The median follow-up of 1.6 years (range, 0.6-4.1 years) found that the unimproved group had a higher incidence of major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCEs) (8.1% vs. 25.0%; P=0.044), and that the New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification of the unimproved group was higher than that of the improved group (P=0.018). Conclusions: In ICM patients, a greater amount of preoperative myocardial scarring is associated with unimproved cardiac function after CABG. The measurement of preoperative myocardial scarring may aid clinicians in identifying patients who would benefit from CABG.

Coronary artery bypass grafting vs. percutaneous coronary intervention in coronary artery disease patients with advanced chronic kidney disease: A Chinese single-center study.

Objectives: Aims to compare the contemporary and long-term outcomes of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD). Methods: 823 CAD patients with advanced CKD (eGFR < 30 ml/min/1.73 m2) were collected, including 247 patients who underwent CABG and 576 patients received PCI from January 2014 to February 2021. The primary endpoint was all-cause death. The secondary endpoints included major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCEs), myocardial infarction (MI), stroke and revascularization. Results: Multivariable Cox regression models were used and propensity score matching (PSM) was also performed. After PSM, the 30-day mortality rate in the CABG group was higher than that in the PCI group but without statistically significant (6.6% vs. 2.4%, p = 0.24). During the first year, patients referred for CABG had a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.42 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.41-3.01] for mortality compared with PCI. At the end of the 5-year follow-up, CABG group had a HR of 0.58 (95%CI, 0.38-0.86) for repeat revascularization, a HR of 0.77 (95%CI, 0.52-1.14) for survival rate and a HR of 0.88(95%CI, 0.56-1.18) for MACCEs as compared to PCI. Conclusions: Among patients with CAD and advanced CKD who underwent CABG or PCI, the all-cause mortality and MACCEs were comparable between the two groups in 30 days, 1-year and 5 years. However, CABG was only associated with a significantly lower risk for repeat revascularization compared with PCI at 5 years follow-up.

The number of myocardial infarction segments connected to papillary muscle is associated with the improvement in moderate ischemic mitral regurgitation.

Background: We evaluated whether the number of myocardial infarction (MI) segments connected to the papillary muscle (PM), as assessed using cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE), predicts whether moderate ischemic mitral regurgitation (IMR) improves after isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) to guide the choice of surgical strategy. Methods: A total of 54 patients diagnosed with coronary heart disease (CHD) complicated with moderate IMR who underwent isolated CABG were selected continuously in this retrospective study at Beijing Anzhen Hospital. All patients underwent preoperative LGE. The patients were divided into the IMR improved group (37 patients) and the unimproved group (17 patients) according to 1-year postoperative echocardiography. The factors associated with no IMR improvement after isolated CABG were analyzed. There was no trial registration and no publication of the study protocol. Results: The number of MI segments connected to PM was an independent risk factor for no IMR improvement after isolated CABG [odds ratio 4.39; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.93-9.98; P<0.001]. The optimal receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve cut-off value for no IMR improvement was ≥2 (sensitivity: 82.4%; specificity: 83.8%). Follow-up at 1-5 years (median, 2.8 years) showed that the incidences of major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (5.4% vs. 23.5%; P=0.041) and New York Heart Association (NYHA) grade (P=0.026) were higher in the unimproved group. Conclusions: In patients with CHD complicated with moderate IMR, the number of MI segments connected to PM is an independent risk factor for no IMR improvement after isolated CABG. Mitral valve surgery should be performed simultaneously with CABG in patients with ≥2 MI segments connected to the PM.

Development and Validation of a Novel Nomogram for Preoperative Prediction of In-Hospital Mortality After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Surgery in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction.

Background and Aims: Patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) are among the most challenging patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting surgery (CABG). Several surgical risk scores are commonly used to predict the risk in patients undergoing CABG. However, these risk scores do not specifically target HFrEF patients. We aim to develop and validate a new nomogram score to predict the risk of in-hospital mortality among HFrEF patients after CABG. Methods: The study retrospectively enrolled 489 patients who had HFrEF and underwent CABG. The outcome was postoperative in-hospital death. About 70% (n = 342) of the patients were randomly constituted a training cohort and the rest (n = 147) made a validation cohort. A multivariable logistic regression model was derived from the training cohort and presented as a nomogram to predict postoperative mortality in patients with HFrEF. The model performance was assessed in terms of discrimination and calibration. Besides, we compared the model with EuroSCORE-2 in terms of discrimination and calibration. Results: Postoperative death occurred in 26 (7.6%) out of 342 patients in the training cohort, and in 10 (6.8%) out of 147 patients in the validation cohort. Eight preoperative factors were associated with postoperative death, including age, critical state, recent myocardial infarction, stroke, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤35%, LV dilatation, increased serum creatinine, and combined surgery. The nomogram achieved good discrimination with C-indexes of 0.889 (95%CI, 0.839-0.938) and 0.899 (95%CI, 0.835-0.963) in predicting the risk of mortality after CABG in the training and validation cohorts, respectively, and showed well-fitted calibration curves in the patients whose predicted mortality probabilities were below 40%. Compared with EuroSCORE-2, the nomogram had significantly higher C-indexes in the training cohort (0.889 vs. 0.762, p = 0.005) as well as the validation cohort (0.899 vs. 0.816, p = 0.039). Besides, the nomogram had better calibration and reclassification than EuroSCORE-2 both in the training and validation cohort. The EuroSCORE-2 underestimated postoperative mortality risk, especially in high-risk patients. Conclusions: The nomogram provides an optimal preoperative estimation of mortality risk after CABG in patients with HFrEF and has the potential to facilitate identifying HFrEF patients at high risk of in-hospital mortality.

The expansion of no-touch harvesting sequential vein graft after off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: Many studies support that the no-touch (NT) procedure can improve the patency rate of vein grafts. However, it is not clear that the sequential vein graft early expansion in the NT technique during off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). This study will explore this issue. METHODS: This was a prospective single-center randomized controlled clinical trial. A total of 100 patients undergoing off-pump CABG with the sequential saphenous graft were randomly assigned to two groups: the NT and conventional (CON) groups. Perioperative and postoperative data were collected during the hospital stay. The mean diameter of sequential grafts was measured using cardiac computed tomography angiography 3 months after the operation. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the average diameter of sequential grafts between the two groups (NT: [2.98 ± 0.42], CON: [3.26 ± 0.51], p = .005). There was no difference in occlusion of sequential venous grafts between the two groups (NT: 4/48 [8.3%], CON: 5/49 [10.2%], p = 1.000). There were differences in surgery time between the two groups (NT: 220 [188,240], CON: 190 [175,230], p = .009). CONCLUSIONS: The sequential graft early expansion in the NT technique is not as pronounced as that in the conventional technique, which may have a long-term protective effect on the grafts.

No-Touch Sequential Saphenous Venous Harvesting Technique in Off-Pump Bypass Surgery: A Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND: In the mid-1990s, the Swedish expert team proposed saphenous vein graft (SVG) harvesting with pedicle tissue. The short-term and long-term patency rates of the great saphenous vein obtained by the no-touch (NT) were higher than those obtained by the conventional (CON). In the past, NT harvesting was mainly used in on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), and vein grafts were mostly single vein grafts. In this study, we retrospectively analyzed the safety and effectiveness of sequential vein grafts using NT harvesting in off-pump CABG. METHODS: From 2017 to 2019, a total of 505 patients were included in the study. There were 150 patients in the NT group and 355 patients in the CON group. After applying propensity score matching (1:1 matching), 148 patients were included in each group. Baseline data, graft patency, post-operative complications, leg wound complications and 1-year major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCEs) were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the patency rate of sequential venous grafts between the two groups 1 year after the operation either before [NT: 7.1% (10/141) vs. CON: 11.5% (38/331), p = 0.149) or after matching (NT: 7.1% (10/140) vs. CON: 7.3% (9/124), p = 0.971]. There was no significant difference in the composite clinical endpoint between the two groups either before [NT: 3 (2.3%) vs. CON: 9 (2.8%), p = 1.000] or after matching [NT: 3 (2.3%) vs. CON: 3 (2.5%), p = 1.000]. There were differences in leg wound complications between the two groups both before [NT: 9 (6.9%) vs. CON: 6 (1.9%), p = 0.007] and after matching [NT: 9 (6.9%) vs. CON: 2 (1.7%), p = 0.043]. CONCLUSIONS: The application of the NT harvesting in off-pump CABG with sequential vein grafts is safe and effective. NT method has disadvantages in leg wound.

Prophylactic intra-aortic balloon pump in patients with left main disease undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting.

BACKGROUND: Preventive intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) for high-risk patients with stable hemodynamics is controversial, and its definition of high-risk is still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effect of prophylactic IABP on the early outcome of left main disease (LMD) patients receiving off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCABG) with stable hemodynamics. METHODS: From January 2013 to April 2020, 257 consecutive patients who underwent OPCABG through sternotomy were enrolled in this study. All LMD patients (greater than 70%) had stable hemodynamics (BP>100 mmHg without vasoconstrictor substance infusion). Early outcomes of 125 patients with prophylactic IABP (IABP group) and 132 patients without IABP (Control group) were compared in this study. RESULTS: IABP did not show favorable effect on the conversion to CPB (RR 0.63, 95%CI 0.05-7.89, P = 0.7211), perioperative MI (RR 0.69, 95%CI 0.22-2.12, P = 0.5163), mortality (RR 0.65, 95%CI 0.04-10.25, P = 0.7608) or the composite end of the conversion, MI and mortality (RR 0.63, 95%CI 0.23-1.74, P = 0.3747). There was greater incidence of prolonged ventilation in IABP after adjustment (RR2.16, 95%CI 1.12-4.18, P = 0.0221). There was no IABP-related mortality or limb ischemia. CONCLUSION: No significant difference in early outcomes was observed in hemodynamically stable patients with LMD between prophylactic IABP group and control group. Prophylactic IABP may be unnecessary in patients with LMD undergoing OPCABG.

Giant right coronary artery aneurysm with a fistula to the left ventricle.

A right coronary artery (RCA) aneurysm with a fistula to the left ventricle is rare. In general, the draining site of the RCA fistula may be the right ventricle, right atrium, or pulmonary veins, whereas drainage to the left ventricle occurs less frequently. We report a patient with a RCA aneurysm with a fistula to the left ventricle. He was treated successfully by resection of the RCA aneurysm and closure of the fistula.

[Clinical application of redo coronary artery bypass grafting].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the clinical characteristics and outcomes of redo CABG. METHODS: The outcomes of 42 consecutive patients who underwent redo CABG from January 2002 to December 2010 was analyzed. There were 29 males and 13 females, aging from 46 to 78 years old with a mean of (61.2 ± 2.1) years. Off-pump CABG was applied for 31 patients and on-pump CABG for 11 patients. There were 1 patient underwent concomitant aortic valve replacement and 1 patient underwent aortic root and right aortic arch replacement respectively. RESULTS: Three patients died of right ventricle rupture, heart failure and multiple system organ failure respectively and the perioperative mortality rate was 4.8%. The post-operatively mechanical ventilation time varied from 9 to 27 h with a mean of (17 ± 7) h. There was no residual angina and perioperative myocardial infarction in the remaining patients who were all discharged uneventfully. Intraoperative 6 patients had accepted intraaortic balloon counterpulsation. During the follow-up from 6 months to 4.5 years for 38 patients, which showed no evidence of recurrent angina and postoperative coronary CT angiography in 12 patients showed the patency of grafts is good. CONCLUSION: Satisfactory outcome of redo coronary artery bypass grafting can be achieved if proper indication were choose and reasonable management were performed.

[Long-term results of surgical repair of ruptured sinus of aortic sinus aneurysm].

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the clinic characteristics and effect of surgical repair of ruptured aortic sinus aneurysm. METHODS: From September 1997 to September 2007, 43 patients with ruptured aortic sinus aneurysm underwent surgical procedures. There were 32 male and 11 female patients. The age ranged from 11 to 50 years old with a mean of (29.0 +/- 11.5) years old. The origins of rupture were the right coronary sinus in 34 patients and the noncoronary sinus in 9 patients. The aneurysms ruptured into the right ventricle in 30 patients, the right atrium in 8 patients, the right ventricle and right atrium in 3 patients, and the ventricular septum and then the right ventricle in 2 patients. Associated cardiac anomalies included ventricular septal defect in 26 patients, aortic regurgitation in 15 patients, infectious endocarditis in 8 patients, tricuspid regurgitation in 6 patients, atrial septum defect in 4 patients, mitral valve regurgitation in 2 patients, patent ductus arteriosus in 2 patients, and pulmonary valve vegetation in 1 patient. All the patients underwent the repair of ruptured aortic sinus aneurysm and correction of associated anomalies with cardiopulmonary bypass. RESULTS: There were no deaths after the operation and during the follow-up. The complications, including acute heart failure and III atrioventricular block, occurred in 5 patients. Follow-up was 6 to 120 months with a mean of (68.0 +/- 17.7) months. Two patients underwent reoperation for aortic valve replacement at the 6(th) and 8(th) year after the first operation. There were 2 patients which the aortic regurgitation deteriorated from grade I to II. CONCLUSIONS: Repair of ruptured aortic sinus aneurysm presents a satisfactory result. Aggressive treatment in early time, prevention of post-operative complications and long-term follow-up are recommended in the treatment for patients of ruptured aortic sinus aneurysm with infectious endocarditis and aortic regurgitation.

Single-center report of 5-year follow-up on 94 patients underwent transmyocardial laser revascularization.

BACKGROUND: Transmyocardial laser revascularization (TMLR) has been used in the treatment of patients with end-stage coronary artery disease (CAD) since 1990. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of TMLR in patients with diffuse CAD. METHODS: Ninety-four consecutive patients underwent TMLR in one center from July 1997 to December 2000. The follow-up data of these patients were obtained through face-to-face, mail questionnaires, or telephone interviews in July 2004 and December 2004. Four cases failed to respond. Mean follow-up time was (5.5 +/- 1.0) years. RESULTS: Mean Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) angina scores of TMLR patients were 3.1 +/- 0.8 at baseline, 1.7 +/- 0.9 at 1 year (P < 0.05), 1.7 +/- 0.9 at 3 years (P < 0.05), and 1.9 +/- 0.9 at 5 years (P < 0.05). At an average of 5 years, 69% of the patients had > or = 1 angina class reduction, mean NYHA class level (1.9 +/- 0.9) ameliorated compared to the baseline (2.5 +/- 0.7, P < 0.001), the rate of re-hospitalization was 2.7 times/person. Kaplan-Meier survival rate was 87% at 1 year, 69% at 3 years and 64% at 5 years. The causes of death were attributed more to heart failure (58.9%) and myocardial infraction (14.7%) after TMLR. The patients with no angina relief, or who died after TMLR, had a higher percentage of preoperative unstable anginas or prior myocardial infraction compared to the survivors. The assorted shapes of myocardial laser channels were detected in some patients by the color Doppler velocity technique. CONCLUSIONS: TMLR provided a long-term improvement in the quality of life, including CCS angina class or NYHA heart functional class for about 70% of Chinese patients with severely disabling angina pectoris. The various myocardial laser channels would always be visible after TMLR. 5-years after TMLR as a sole therapy, the survival rate of the patients was 64%.