Heparin-bonded cardiopulmonary bypass circuits reduce cognitive dysfunction.

Objective: To determine the incidence of cerebral dysfunction in cardiac surgical patients exposed to heparin-bonded cardiopulmonary bypass (HB-CPB) versus nonheparin-bonded cardiopulmonary bypass (NH-CPB) circuits through neuropsychometric testing and to correlate these findings with markers of the systemic inflammatory response to CPB.

Design: Prospective, randomized, blinded clinical trial.

Setting: University hospital.