Radionuclide ventriculography following coronary bypass surgery: correlation with arteriographic findings

Radionuclide ventriculography demonstrates improved left ventricular performance during exercise following coronary bypass operation, but few data are available that compare the nuclear ventriculographic findings with arteriographic evaluation. We report the findings in 25 patients in whom both tests were performed within a short period of time. coronary bypass operations had been performed six weeks to nine years previously. Ejection fraction (EF) increased during stress in 5 completely revascularized patients. Exercise provoked deterioration in regional wall motion in 9 of 20 (45%) patients with incomplete revascularization, and EF failed to rise during exercise in 15 (75%). Although resting EF was similar in both completely revascularized patients and in those who were not (0.06 versus 0.58), EF during exercise was significantly greater in completely revascularized patients (0.68 +/- 0.02 versus 0.55 +/- 0.03, p less than 0.01). Exercise-provoked decline in EF in patients with coronary artery bypass grafts reflects continued significant occlusive disease.