title: Influence of respiratory disease on perioperative cardiac risk in patients undergoing elective surgery for abdominal aortic aneurysm.
abstract: We retrospectively reviewed perioperative cardiac complications in a series of 214 patients who underwent surgical treatment for infrarenal aortic aneurysm between 1992 and 1996. There were 192 men and 22 women, with a mean age of 68.3 years. Cardiac risk factors included angina in 28% of patients and previous myocardial infarction in 25%. Resting electrocardiography was normal in 80 patients (37.5%). Depending on clinical findings, thallium-201 scintigraphy was undertaken in 76 patients (35.5%) and led to elective coronary arteriography in 22 patients (10%). Results of coronary arteriography revealed lesions in 14 patients. Aortic reconstruction was performed by the transperitoneal route in all patients. Procedures consisted of aortoaortic bypass (63%), aortobiiliac bypass (27.5%), or aortobifemoral bypass (9.5%). Nine patients (4.2%) died within the first 30 postoperative days. The cause of death was myocardial infarction (MI) in two patients (1%), colonic necrosis in two (1%), acute pancreatitis in one (0.5%), acute renal insufficiency in three (1.4%), and multiple organ failure in one patient (0.5%). Nonfatal cardiac complications were observed in 15 patients (7%). Statistical analysis of risk factors revealed two predictors of perioperative cardiac complications, i.e., history of chronic bronchitis and reoperation. On review of the literature, we cannot propose a routine preoperative work-up. Prospective multicentric studies are needed to determine the predictive value of current preoperative screening methods.
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Hôpital GR Laennec, Nantes, France.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Pillet
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chaillou
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bizouarn
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pittaluga
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Patra
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chabbert
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sellier
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D017544:Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D001991:Bronchitis / Q000150:complications*; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures; D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors