title: A simplified technique for repair of an injured internal mammary artery.
abstract: Injury to the internal mammary artery (IMA) during harvesting or the construction of sequential anastomosis can be troublesome and may force the surgeon to abandon the use of this valuable conduit. Since July 1991, we have utilized a simple technique for repair of a damaged IMA anywhere along its length. This involves leaving the IMA as a pedicled in situ graft and anastomosing a small piece of vein graft to an arteriotomy at the site of injury. The IMA is then used as originally planned, usually to the left anterior descending, and the vein graft can be used for a second vessel or simply tied. The technique was used in 12 patients, all of whom had an uncomplicated postoperative course.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, Northern Ireland.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Sarsam
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007387:Internal Mammary-Coronary Artery Anastomosis; D007431:Intraoperative Complications; D008323:Mammary Arteries / Q000293:injuries* / Q000601:surgery*; D014656:Vascular Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*