The importance of grade 2 ischemic mitral regurgitation in coronary artery bypass grafting

To study if grade 2 ischemic mitral regurgitation (MR) influences outcome after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).

Results of all CABG patients with grade 2/4 ischemic MR operated during 1995--1998 (n = 89) were compared with all CABG patients without MR (n = 4709) during the same period. To further evaluate patients with grade 2 ischemic MR, a case-control study focusing on functional status was performed. Control patients without MR (n = 89) were matched for age, gender and left ventricular ejection fraction. All patients were interviewed regarding angina symptoms and functional status.

Survival according to Kaplan--Meier at 1 and 3 years were inferior in the MR group compared to all CABG patients (91 vs 96% and 84 vs 92%, respectively (P = 0.0017). However, MR patients were older (68 +/- 9 vs 65 +/- 9 years (mean +/- SD), P = 0.008) and had an inferior preoperative left ventricular ejection fraction (42 +/- 14 vs 58 +/- 14%, P < 0.0001). In the case-control study, New York Heart Association (NYHA) class and Higgins' risk score differed preoperatively between the MR group and controls. Neither 30-day mortality (4,5% in both groups) nor survival at 1 (91 vs 93%) and 3 years (84 vs 88%) differed significantly. NYHA class and angina class (Canadian Cardiovascular Society, CCS) improved similarly in both groups. Postoperatively, 62% of the patients in the MR group had reduced, 36% unchanged and 2% increased MR.

CABG on patients with grade 2 ischemic MR reduces angina pectoris and improves functional status to the same extent as in CABG patients without MR. Postoperative morbidity and mortality do not differ significantly between the groups. Grade of MR is reduced or unchanged after CABG in patients with grade 2 ischemic MR. The study supports an operative strategy where grade 2 ischemic mitral regurgitation is treated by CABG alone but the result do not exclude that there might be individual patients that would benefit from a valvular or annular procedure in combination with CABG. How these patients should be identified remains unclear.