[Left ventricular function at rest and during dynamic load before and after aortocoronary bypass. Preliminary report]

17 patients with coronary artery disease were studied before and 10 +/- 3 months (mean +/- 1 SD) after aortocoronary bypass surgery. Left ventricular performance was analyzed at rest and in 12 cases during dynamic exercise (work load 59 +/- 22 watts) with tip manometer pressure measurements. The degree of coronary artery obstruction was estimated pre- and postoperatively by vascularization index (VaI). Patients were separated into 2 groups (group A: 8 patients with postoperatively improved VaI, and group B: 9 patients with unchanged or worsened VaI). Apart from a significant fall in LVEDP (p less than 0.025) in group A, there was no significant change in left ventricular dynamics in either group at rest, while a significant improvement in mean LVEDP (p less than 0.05), max dP/dt (p less than 0.05), Vpm (p less than 0.005) and Vmax (p less than 0.005) during dynamic exercise was observed in group A, but no significant change in these terms in group B, after surgery.