Do nonfatal events during the first 5 years after coronary artery bypass surgery influence 10 year outcomes?

Objective: Few have examined the influence of early adverse events after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) on long-term survival. We sought to determine if the occurrence of nonfatal major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) during the first 5 years after CABG influences survival and adverse events at 10 years.

Methods: All patients who underwent isolated CABG from 1990 to 2014 at a single center in Ontario, Canada, were included. Primary end point was all-cause mortality. The secondary end point of interest was MACCE, a composite of mortality, nonfatal myocardial infarction, stroke, and repeat revascularization.

Results: A total of 20,444 cases of elective primary isolated CABG were identified as being alive at 5 years, with 11% of patients developing nonfatal MACCE within the first 5 years after CABG (MACCE group) and the remaining 89% were alive without a MACCE event at 5 years (non-MACCE group). Following propensity score matching, 2167 patient-pairs were formed. Among the MACCE group, 972 out of 2167 (44.9%) developed a myocardial infarction, 519 out of 2167 (24.0%) had a stroke, and 946 out of 2167 (43.7%) required a repeat revascularization within the first 5 years after CABG. Non-MACCE was associated with better overall survival (hazard ratio, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.25-1.63; P < .01) and freedom from MACCE (hazard ratio, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.45-1.79; P < .01) up to 10 years after CABG compared with MACCE cases.

Conclusions: Patients who experienced nonfatal MACCE during the first 5 years after CABG experienced worse survival and more MACCE at 10 years. Prevention of major adverse events during the first 5 years after surgical revascularization may be an important strategy to improve late outcomes.