Does bone wax make sense in off-pump coronary surgery? A prospective randomized study.

Introduction: The effect of bone wax on sternal infection and intraoperative bleeding in off-pump coronary surgery has not been reported in current literature.

Aim: To prospectively evalute this in a cohort of high risk patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery surgery at our institution. The potential impact on cell saver utilization was also studied.

Impact of smoking on the outcomes of minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass.

Background: Tobacco smoking has been associated with an increased risk of complications after conventional coronary surgery. However, the impact of smoking on the risk of postoperative complications in minimally invasive coronary surgery is yet to be studied. We aimed to analyze the impact of the preoperative smoking status on the short- and long-term outcomes of minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass grafting (MIDCAB) in the context of isolated surgical revascularization or in association with percutaneous coronary intervention.

Robot-assisted vs. conventional MIDCAB: A propensity-matched analysis.

Background: Robotic assistance (RA) in the harvesting of internal thoracic artery during minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass grafting (MIDCAB) provides several potential benefits for surgeon and patient in comparison with conventional MIDCAB. The two technical options have not been thoroughly compared in the literature yet. We aimed to perform this in our cohort with the use of propensity-score matching (PSM).

Female sex as a risk factor in minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass grafting.

. Female sex has been generally accepted as a risk factor for short-term mortality and adverse events in surgical myocardial revascularization. However, there have been no data published yet about sex differences in minimally invasive settings.

Elective minimally invasive coronary artery bypass: shunt or tournique occlusion? Assessment of a protective role of perioperative left anterior descending shunting on myocardial damage. A prospective randomized study.

Background: To determine impact of intraluminal-left anterior descending shunt to prevent myocardial damage in minimally invasive coronary artery bypass.

Methods: 38 patients were randomly assigned to external tournique occlusion (n = 19) or intraluminal-left anterior descending shunt group (n= 19). Blood samples for cardiac troponin T were collected at 30 minutes prior to, 6 and 24 hours after surgery.