title: The Dresden approach for complete multivessel revascularization.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In a prospective clinical trial, a group of patients receiving less invasive surgical procedure, including minithoracotomy in combination with cardiopulmonary bypass (group 1), was compared to a group of patients receiving conventional bypass surgery (group 2) for the treatment of coronary artery disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Group 1 included 85 patients (71 men, 14 women, aged 39 to 82 years, median 61.1 +/- 9.0 years); group 2 included 53 patients (38 men, 15 women, aged 51 to 79 years, median 62.0 +/- 6.1 years).
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no perioperative deaths in the whole series of patients. Time of operation was 256 +/- 43 minutes in group 1 and 150.0 +/- 53.6 minutes in group 2. Hospitalization was 6.0 +/- 1.4 days and intensive care unit stay 1 day for both groups. Back pain assessment on postoperative day 3 showed less pain in group 1. Three-month follow-up revealed ischemia in stress electrocardiogram in 2 patients (2.5%) in group 1 and in 2 patients (4.1%) in group 2. Coronary angiograms confirmed the stress-electrocardiogram findings.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Surgical results are equal for both techniques. Even though time of operation is longer in patients receiving less invasive procedures, intensive care unit stay and hospital stays are the same length. Early postoperative back pain is less in group 1 and combined with faster convalescence.
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Institute, University of Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gulielmos
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brandt
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Knaut
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cichon
authors.forename: F M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kappert
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schüler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000379:methods*; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures; D015996:Survival Rate