Preoperative warfarin treatment and outcome of coronary artery bypass graft surgery.

Background: The aim of this case-control study was to evaluate the outcome of isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) when using a short (median, 2 days) preoperative pause in home warfarin treatment.

Methods: A consecutive series of 162 patients on long-term warfarin treatment (median international normalized ratio at the time of operation, 1.9) who underwent isolated CABG was compared with a matched control group of 162 patients with no oral anticoagulation.

Differential prognostic impact of comorbidity in head and neck cancer.

Background: The aim was to investigate how the effect of comorbid illnesses on survival is modified by other prognostic factors in head and neck cancer.

Methods: A population-based retrospective cohort study involved 221 patients residing in 1 primary health care district (population about 700,000) in whom head and neck carcinoma was diagnosed between January 1, 1986, and December 31, 1996. Data on clinical characteristics and survival were obtained from patient charts.