Successful introduction of off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting in Southeastern Asian countries: A single center's experience in Thailand

BACKGROUND: Off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting has not been standardized in Southeastern Asian countries because it is technically demanding. However, this method could be suitable for economically disadvantaged institutions because it saves cost on the heart–lung machine. We summarized our results to assess the validity of our early introduction of this method. METHODS: We reviewed the data from 750 patients who underwent off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting at our institution. Before the introduction of off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting, experts from Japan were enlisted to teach our surgeons technicalities of the procedure. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality, and secondary outcomes included any major adverse cardiac or cerebrovascular event. RESULTS: The in-hospital mortality rate was 1.5%. The rates of survival and freedom from major adverse cardiac or cerebrovascular event 3 years after the operation were 92.5% ± 1.8% and 90.7% ± 2.2%, respectively. In the multivariable analysis, the independent risk factors for major adverse cardiac or cerebrovascular event were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (adjusted hazard ratio = 2.35, 95% confidence interval = 1.35–4.10, P = .003) and renal insufficiency (adjusted hazard ratio = 2.70, 95% confidence interval = 1.52–4.80, P = .001), whereas risk factors for in-hospital death were pump conversion (relative risk = 17.4, 95% confidence interval = 1.63–4.41, P < .001). CONCLUSION: Successful introduction of off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting provided a favorable outcome almost equal to that in high-volume centers in developed countries.