OBJECTIVE: Retrospective study eveluating the morbid-mortality and hospital behaviour in patients over 70-years -od patients submitted to myocardial revascularization involving the radial artery as the second arterial graft. METHOD: During the period of August 1994 to December 2002, 2487 cases of myocardial revascularization were performed by the group of the Juiz de Fora Heart Institute, 476 of whom were 70 years of age or older and 36 (Group II) received the radial artery as the second arterial graft. The same type of surgery was performed in 142 patients under 70-year-old (Group I). Reoperations, off-pump operations (OPCAB) or associated procedures were excluded from this study. RESULTS: The median age was 72.5 years, the mortality rate was 6% in this group of patients and the incidence of complications was low, comparable to the 142 under 70-year-old patients (Group I) submitted to the same type of surgery. CONCLUSION: The resultsachieved with this study lead the authors to believe that the radial artery can be safely used as the second arterial graft in well selected septuagenarian patients, despite the major risk of co-morbidities related to this age.
Coronary artery disease; Radial artery; Myocardial revascularization
