title: Post radial artery harvest hand perception: postoperative 12-month follow-up results.
abstract: The 12-months' follow-up results for radial artery harvest in relation to complications are reported and compared with the postoperative 3-months' results. The postoperative wound problems of 155 patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting with radial artery harvesting were assessed using a questionnaire at 3 and 12 months after surgery. The questionnaire contained 9 statements concerning hand and forearm problems in daily life. The answers were graded in 7 levels. An answer of higher than grade 3 (mild symptoms) was regarded as a significant symptom. No hand ischemic complications was observed. In the 12 month-study, 152 patients (98.1%) were normal. Hand pain and numbness occurred in 25 patients (16.1 %) and 33 patients (21.3%), respectively, at 3 months and were markedly improved at 12 months (pain: 13 (8.4%), p = 0.045, numbness: 20 (12.9%), p = 0.069). Total scores for all questions also significantly decreased at 12 months (10.2 +/- 3.5) compared with 3 months (11.1 +/- 3.9) postoperatively (mean +/- SD, p = 0.0003). Radial artery harvest was quite acceptable from the patient's perception, although a few patients had numbness and pain in the 3 months after surgery. Those complications significantly improve in the later postoperative phase.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, Austin & Repatriation Medical Centre, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. cvshata@aol.com
authors.forename: Mitsumasa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hata
authors.forename: Jai
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Raman
authors.forename: Siven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Seevanayagam
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hare
authors.forename: Brian F
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Buxton
mesh_terms: D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000601:surgery; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005542:Forearm / Q000098:blood supply / Q000601:surgery; D006225:Hand / Q000098:blood supply / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011788:Quality of Life; D017534:Radial Artery / Q000637:transplantation*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires