title: Pulmonary gas exchange in candidates for surgical treatment of ischaemic heart disease.
abstract: The spirometry and pulmonary gas exchange in 38 patients with ischaemic heart disease (IHD), selected for direct revascularization of the myocardium (or combined with left ventricular aneurysmectomy), were examined on the basis of clinical investigation and coronary arteriography. Elevated left ventricular end-diastolic pressure was found in 40% at rest and in more than 50% of patients during exercise. Vital capacity was entirely within the normal limits. A relation was found between the period of time since the first acute myocardial infarction. In 20% of the patients the forced expiratory volume was below the predicted normal, but the decrease was not significant. A mild arterial hypoxaemia was found in 64% of patients at rest and in 70% during exercise; 79% showed an elevated alveolar arterial oxygen gradient. The abnormalities did not depend on the degree of coronary artery and left ventricular involvement nor on the haemodynamic parameters. However, a certain relation to history of cigarette smoking, which appears to affect pulmonary gas exchange more than IHD, was observed. The degree of respiratory disturbance does not in any way influence the proposed surgical treatment.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000503:physiopathology; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000503:physiopathology; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D000860:Hypoxia / Q000150:complications; D008176:Lung Volume Measurements; D008875:Middle Aged; D005082:Physical Exertion; D012119:Respiration; D012907:Smoking / Q000150:complications; D013147:Spirometry