A New Current to The Armamentarium: Is the CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS Score Predictive of Low Left Internal Mammary Artery

Nihat Soylemez1, Mehmet Balli2, Fatma Köksal3

  • 1Department of Cardiology, Mersin City Training and Research Hospital, Mersin, Turkey. drnihats@yahoo.com.

The Heart Surgery Forum
|September 2, 2021
PubMed

Insights

A high CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS score can predict low Left Internal Mammary Artery (LIMA) flow during coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). This score offers a reliable preoperative estimation of LIMA flow in severe coronary artery disease patients.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Surgery
  • Vascular Biology
  • Medical Diagnostics

Background:

  • The Left Internal Mammary Artery (LIMA) is crucial for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), offering superior patency rates, especially for the left anterior descending artery.
  • The CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS scoring system is established for predicting coronary artery disease (CAD) severity in stable patients.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the correlation between Left Internal Mammary Artery (LIMA) graft flow and the CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS score in patients undergoing CABG.
  • To determine if the CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS score can predict suboptimal LIMA flow during surgery.

Main Methods:

  • A cohort of 684 patients undergoing CABG was analyzed, excluding those with prior bypass, emergency surgery, Leriche syndrome, or severe pulmonary/subclavian disease.
  • Patients were categorized into low LIMA flow and adequate LIMA flow groups based on intraoperative evaluation.
  • The CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS score was calculated for all eligible patients.

Main Results:

  • Older age, higher CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS scores, mild/moderate COPD, increased number of severely diseased vessels, and higher BMI were independent predictors of poor LIMA flow.
  • A CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS score cutoff of >5.5 demonstrated high predictive accuracy (AUC: 0.938) for low LIMA flow, with 92.9% sensitivity and 83.4% specificity.

Conclusions:

  • A high preoperative CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS score effectively predicts low intraoperative LIMA flow in CABG patients.
  • The CHA2DS2-Vasc-HS score serves as a practical and dependable tool for preoperative assessment of LIMA flow in severe CAD cases.
Abstract