title: Endarterectomy, vein patch, and mammary bypass of the anterior descending artery.
abstract: Occasionally the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery contains such diffuse calcific atherosclerosis that an area suitable for distal anastomosis with the internal mammary artery (IMA) cannot be found. Additionally, the LAD of some patients contains multiple areas of stenosis, which would prevent free outflow from the IMA graft. In these cases the potentially increased operative risk of LAD endarterectomy is justified to avoid leaving poorly revascularized areas of anteroseptal heart. In an effort to provide the long-term patency benefits of IMA grafting for these patients without the technical difficulty of a lengthy IMA to LAD anastomosis, we have combined saphenous vein patch reconstruction with IMA bypass when LAD endarterectomy is required.
authors.affiliation: Northern Indiana Heart Institute, Fort Wayne.
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Ladowski
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Schatzlein
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Underhill
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Peterson
mesh_terms: D001807:Blood Vessel Prosthesis; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000601:surgery*; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000601:surgery; D004691:Endarterectomy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007387:Internal Mammary-Coronary Artery Anastomosis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012501:Saphenous Vein / Q000637:transplantation