Reappraisal of coronary endarterectomy for the treatment of diffuse coronary artery disease.

Background: The development of new technologies such as transmyocardial laser revascularization and, more recently, local delivery of angiogenic growth factors has refocused attention on the surgical management of diffuse coronary artery disease. In some cases, coronary endarterectomy is also technically feasible. To facilitate decision-making among these options, we reviewed our experience with coronary endarterectomy to determine the results to be expected with this more traditional approach.

Methods: A search of our computerized database identified 7,096 patients undergoing myocardial revascularization between January 1, 1986 and March 30, 1997, of whom 177 (2.3%) underwent endarterectomy of at least one coronary artery. Perioperative events were derived from the database. Follow-up information was obtained from patients at 3 months to 11.5 years (mean = 55.7 +/- 38.8 months) after surgery.

Results: Endarterectomy was performed on the right coronary artery (RCA) system in 100 patients, the left anterior descending (LAD) system in 52, the circumflex system in 18, and in multiple distributions in 7. The 30-day mortality was 7% for RCA, 0% for LAD, 17% for circumflex, and 14% for multi-system endarterectomy (p = 0.20). There were no statistically significant differences in perioperative myocardial infarction or ventricular dysrhythmia between these groups. Actuarial survival at 5 years was 76% for patients undergoing RCA endarterectomy and 75% for left sided (LAD or circumflex) endarterectomy (p = 0.91). At late follow-up, 74% (86/117) of survivors were angina-free, 6% (7/117) had undergone subsequent angioplasty, and 3% (4/117) had undergone subsequent surgery.

Conclusions: Coronary endarterectomy can be accomplished with acceptable operative risk and good long-term results, even when applied in a highly selective manner. The results of novel therapies for diffuse coronary artery disease should be considered in the context of those achievable with more traditional approaches.