Is sex a risk factor for death in patients with bilateral internal thoracic artery grafts?

Background: Mortality after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) has been reported to be higher in women. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether bilateral internal thoracic artery (BITA) grafting in women has a long-term survival benefit over single internal thoracic artery grafting, possibly equivalent to the male population.

Methods: A retrospective review was undertaken of our prospectively collected database.

The Chronobiology of Stanford Type A Aortic Dissections: A Comparison of Northern versus Southern Hemispheres.

Background: Seasonal variations of Stanford Type A dissections (STADs) have been previously described in the Northern Hemisphere (NH). This study sought to determine if these variation are mirrored in the Southern Hemisphere (SH).

Methods: Data from patients treated surgically for STADs were retrospectively obtained from existing administrative and clinical databases from NH and SH sites.

Myocardial Revascularization Exclusively With Bilateral Internal Thoracic Arteries in T-Graft Configuration: Effects on Late Survival.

Background: We studied long-term survival using bilateral internal thoracic artery (BITA) grafting in a T-configuration exclusively versus using single internal thoracic artery (SITA) grafting in patients with multivessel disease.

Methods: Consecutive coronary operations performed at a single center between 1996 and 2014 were reviewed. Long-term survival among patients receiving coronary revascularization exclusively with BITA grafting in a T-configuration (n = 2,098) versus SITA grafts plus other types of conduits (saphenous vein graft [SVG] and radial artery [RA]) grafts (n = 1,659).

Immediate extubation after off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery in 1,196 consecutive patients: feasibility, safety and predictors of when not to attempt it.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and safety of immediate extubation (ultrafast-track anesthesia [UFTA]) in the operating room, and the predictors of when not to attempt it in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery (OPCAB).

Design: Case series.

Setting: A private hospital.

Impact of preoperative clopidogrel in off pump coronary artery bypass surgery: a propensity score analysis.

Objective: The aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of recent clopidrogel use before off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting on the postoperative risk of bleeding.

Methods: During the period January 2003 to December 2006, 1104 consecutive patients underwent off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting. Patients were divided into two groups according to the recent use of clopidrogel (within 7 days).