Selective use of off-pump coronary bypass surgery reduces mortality and neurologic morbidity associated with high-risk coronary bypass surgery: a 400-case comparative experience.

The frequency of use of off-pump coronary artery bypass (CAB) surgery to surgically treat coronary artery disease has varied greatly from center to center and from surgeon to surgeon because of preference, training, and experience. We report an experience with 400 consecutive isolated CAB procedures selectively managed with on-pump or off-pump surgery, according to the perceived potential for aortic embolization or stroke as determined by clinical and imaging determinations. The off-pump CAB group (46 patients) was 7.