title: Left main coronary artery patch angioplasty: midterm experience and follow-up with spiral computed tomography.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patch angioplasty is an alternative surgical technique in cases of left main coronary artery stenosis. We report our experience with this technique, with particular mention of the use of spiral computed tomography for the follow-up of our patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this retrospective study we analyzed the results obtained in all 7 patients (3 women and 4 men) who were operated on with this technique in our institution between July 1992 and August 1994. Five consenting patients also underwent graft patency assessment with spiral computed tomographic imaging.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The operation was uneventful in all patients and there were no hospital deaths. Two patients required reoperation (1 of them dying at reoperation), 1 because of restenosis of the graft and 1 because of the presence of a new stenosis in the proximal anterior descending coronary artery. The remaining 5 patients were asymptomatic after 51 +/- 2 months. Spiral computed tomographic images were artifacted and of poor quality.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patch angioplasty of the left main coronary artery can be a valuable therapeutic method in selected cases. Conventional spiral computed tomography is not an optimal noninvasive method for the assessment of graft patency.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, Hospital General Universitario de Alicante, Spain.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Meseguer
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hurlé
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fernández-Latorre
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Alonso
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Llamas
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Casillas
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000789:Angina, Unstable / Q000601:surgery; D017130:Angioplasty / Q000379:methods*; D016477:Artifacts; D002423:Cause of Death; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006083:Graft Occlusion, Vascular / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011856:Radiographic Image Enhancement; D012008:Recurrence; D012086:Reoperation; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D014654:Vascular Patency