title: Five-year follow-up of the Argentine randomized trial of coronary angioplasty with stenting versus coronary bypass surgery in patients with multiple vessel disease (ERACI II).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of the present study is to report the five-year follow-up results of the ERACI II trial.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Immediate and one-year follow-up results of the ERACI II study showed a prognosis advantage of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with stents over coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 450 patients were randomly assigned to undergo either PCI (n = 225); or CABG (n = 225). Only patients with multi-vessel disease were enrolled. Clinical follow-up during five years was obtained in 92% of the total population after hospital discharge. The primary end point of the study was to compare freedom from major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) at 30 days, 1 year, 3 years, and 5 years of follow-up.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At five years of follow-up, patients initially treated with PCI had similar survival and freedom from non-fatal acute myocardial infarction than those initially treated with CABG (92.8% vs. 88.4% and 97.3% vs. 94% respectively, p = 0.16). Freedom from repeat revascularization procedures (PCI/CABG) was significantly lower with PCI compared with CABG (71.5% vs. 92.4%, p = 0.0002). Freedom from MACE was also significantly lower with PCI compared with CABG (65.3% vs. 76.4%; p = 0.013). At five years similar numbers of patients randomized to each revascularization procedure were asymptomatic or with class I angina.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  At five years of follow-up, in the ERACI II study, there were no survival benefits from any revascularization procedure; however patients initially treated with CABG had better freedom from repeat revascularization procedures and from MACE.
authors.affiliation: Otamendi Hospital, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Alfredo E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: Julio
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Baldi
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fernández Pereira
authors.forename: Jose
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Navia
authors.forename: Máximo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rodriguez Alemparte
authors.forename: Alejandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Delacasa
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vigo
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vogel
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: O'Neill
authors.forename: Igor F
authors.initials: IF
authors.lastname: Palacios
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012086:Reoperation; D015607:Stents; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome