title: Use of an audible ultrasonic flowmeter to locate deeply buried coronary arteries for off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting.
abstract: In patients with coronary arteries that are deeply buried in the myocardium and fat, it is difficult and sometimes risky to expose them for off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB), leading to unavoidable conversion to conventional coronary artery bypass grafting (C-CABG) to ensure their safety. We have developed a new search procedure for these coronary arteries using a dedicated ultrasonic flowmeter with a small tip probe for OPCAB. This technique enables the identification of intramuscular and intra-fat coronary arteries that are less diseased and thus more suited for bypass surgery instead of switching to C-CABG. We believe this procedure will not only improve the quality of OPCAB but also expand its indication.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular and General Surgery, Shimane University Faculty of Medicine, 89-1 Enya-cho, Izumo, Shimane 693-8501, Japan.
authors.forename: Keita
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
authors.forename: Haruo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Makuuchi
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: Takamaro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oono
authors.forename: Kiyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Chiba
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D047549:Coronary Artery Bypass, Off-Pump / Q000379:methods*; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005260:Female; D045268:Flowmeters; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D014465:Ultrasonics