Exclusive Bilateral Internal Thoracic Artery Grafts for Myocardial Revascularization Requiring Four Anastomoses or More: Outcomes from a Single Center Experience.

 Multivessel coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) with bilateral internal thoracic arteries (BITA) has only been uncommon and technically demanding. We describe our experience with BITA only CABGs requiring ≥ 4 anastomoses.  The department's database was queried for patients undergoing isolated CABG with ≥ 4 anastomoses.

Off-pump coronary artery surgery with the Coronéo Cor-Vasc stabilizing device: clinical experience of 141 patients.

Objectives: Numerous devices have been successfully introduced in off-pump coronary artery bypass graft (OPCABG) surgery, most of them being disposable tools based on suction stabilization. Coronéo Cor-Vasc is a reusable system combining suction positioning with compression stabilization. The purpose of this study was to analyze our experience in OPCABG with the Cor-Vasc system.

Current role and outcomes of ascending aortic replacement for severe nonaneurysmal aortic atherosclerosis.

Background: Severe atherosclerosis of the ascending aorta is a challenging issue potentially affecting indications for surgery, operative choices, and patients' outcome. No standard treatment has emerged to date, and uncertainties persist about criteria for selecting patients and procedures.

Methods: Replacement of the atherosclerotic ascending aorta was performed in 64 patients at time of either aortic (n = 49), mitral (n = 21), or tricuspid (n = 7) valve surgery.

Clamshell approach and partial cardiopulmonary bypass to repair a right aortic arch aneurysm.

AB A 27-year-old man with history of ventricular septal defect repair in infancy presented with aneurysm of Edwards type IIIB right aortic arch. Karyotype analysis excluded chromosome 22 anomalies. The lesion was repaired using beating heart partial cardiopulmonary bypass via a clamshell incision.

Early and late outcomes of cardiac surgery in octogenarians.

Background: Expanding demand for cardiac surgery in the elderly requires constant assessment of selection criteria and outcomes.

Methods: Records of consecutive patients 80 years old or greater (n = 355) having cardiac operations from September 1998 through May 2007 were reviewed. There were 172 isolated coronary bypass grafting (CABG), 73 isolated valve, 79 valve and CABG combined, and 31 other procedures.

Is it better to use the radial artery as a composite graft? Clinical and angiographic results of aorto-coronary versus Y-graft.

Objective: We sought to evaluate whether the radial artery (RA) provides the same clinical and angiographic results when proximally anastomosed to the aorta or to the left internal thoracic artery (ITA) as a composite Y-graft.

Methods: From February 1999 to December 2002, 512 patients underwent myocardial revascularization using the RA, the left ITA and, when required, the saphenous vein. According to the surgeons' preference the RA was proximally anastomosed to the aorta [336 patients (65.

Analysis of Y-graft blood flow and flow reserve in conditions of increased myocardial oxygen consumption.

Background: It is not well established whether early following surgery the blood flow of arterial composite Y-grafts may efficiently meet the flow demand of the coronary system. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether early after surgery arterial composite Y-grafts may increase the blood flow in response to an increase in myocardial oxygen consumption (MVO2).

Methods: Twenty-seven patients who received complete arterial myocardial revascularization using the left internal thoracic artery (LITA) and the radial artery (RA) as composite Y-graft gave their consent to a pre-discharge coronary angiography and intravascular flow velocity measurements using a Doppler guidewire.