Off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting surgery in early stage myocardial infarction treatment

We evaluated the surgical results of off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) performed within the first 12 h of infarction in patients with acute myocardial infarction. From January 2005 to January 2007, emergency coronary artery bypass grafting without cardiopulmonary bypass was performed in 56 patients with acute coronary syndromes. The mean age was 62.9 (range, 51-86) years. All patients underwent OPCAB via sternotomy. An average of 2.5 +/- 1.1 grafts per patient were performed. The mortality rate was 7.1% (4 of 56 patients). One patient suffered from postoperative stroke (1.7%), and 3 (5.3%) needed hemofiltration for acute renal failure. Postsurgery elective coronary angiography (n = 21) showed no significant stenosis. These results indicate that emergency OPCAB can be applied to patients with acute myocardial infarction with low morbidity and mortality and excellent early results.