title: Baseline flow in coronary bypass grafts.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The purpose of the study is to estimate the total blood flow in coronary artery bypass grafts.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a 3-year period 102 patients having a standardized coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) with the left internal mammary artery (LIMA) anastomosed to the left anterior descending artery and a sequential vein grafted to the remaining diseased coronary arteries were included in the study, 21 females and 81 males. In females a mean of 3.9 anastomosis (range 2-5) were performed and in males a mean of 4.2 (range 2-6) were performed. Flow in the bypass grafts was measured with the transit-time method before termination of cardiopulmonary bypass.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Females: LIMA 31 mL/min, vein graft 74 mL/min (26 mL/min per anastomosis), cumulated flow 105 mL/min. Males: LIMA 31 mL/min, vein graft 93 mL/min (29 mL/min per vein anastomosis), cumulated flow 124 mL/min.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Conventional CABG may restore half of the normal resting coronary artery blood flow (250 mL/min).
authors.affiliation: The Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Gentofte Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Hellerup, Denmark. henrik@dadlnet.dk
authors.forename: Henrik K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Kjaergard
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D015331:Cohort Studies; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D003326:Coronary Circulation / Q000502:physiology*; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D003718:Denmark; D005260:Female; D006084:Graft Rejection; D006085:Graft Survival; D006801:Humans; D007387:Internal Mammary-Coronary Artery Anastomosis; D008297:Male; D008323:Mammary Arteries / Q000637:transplantation*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D014654:Vascular Patency