Off‐pump versus on‐pump coronary artery bypass grafting for octogenarians: A meta‐analysis involving 146 372 patients

There is an ongoing debate concerning the optimal surgical option of myocardial revascularization for octogenarians. The current meta‐analysis aimed to compare clinical outcomes following off‐pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCABG) or conventional coronary artery bypass grafting (CCABG) in octogenarians. PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and EMBASE databases were searched to identify eligible studies from inception to March 2021. The analysis was performed using STATA 15.1. A literature search yielded 18 retrospective studies involving 146 372 patients (OPCABG = 44 522 vs. CCABG = 101 850). Pooled analysis showed a strong trend toward reducing mortality risk in the OPCABG group (odds ratio: 0.75, 95% confidence interval: 0.56–1.00, p = .05). However, it did not reach statistical significance. The sensitive analysis demonstrated that OPCABG was less likely to cause death than CCABG. There were comparable data in myocardial infarction, renal failure, deep sternal wound infection, and hospital stays between the two groups, although the incidence of stroke, atrial fibrillation, prolonged ventilation, and reoperation for bleeding was significantly lower in the OPCAGB group. OPCABG may be an effective surgical strategy for myocardial revascularization, especially in reducing the incidence of postoperative stroke, atrial fibrillation, prolonged ventilation, and reoperation for bleeding.