Impaired baseline regional cerebral perfusion in patients referred for coronary artery bypass.
BACKGROUND
Cognitive dysfunction and cerebral vascular accidents remain some of the most devastating problems related to cardiac surgery. Despite the major advances in perioperative care and operative technique in coronary artery bypass, this cohort of patients appears to have poor cerebral physiologic reserve. The aim of this study was to describe regional cerebral perfusion of patients with coronary artery disease referred for coronary artery bypass grafting.


METHODS
Eighty-two consecutive patients with coronary artery disease referred for coronary artery bypass grafting were enrolled after providing informed consent in an institutional review board-approved study. Patients with prior cerebral vascular accident, transient ischemic attacks, head trauma, or other neurologic afflictions were excluded from the study. We prospectively measured preoperative regional cerebral perfusion using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging of 12 regions. Patients were determined to have an abnormal SPECT if regional cerebral perfusion was less than 2 standard deviations below the mean of age-matched controls.


RESULTS
The mean age was 67.5 (range, 34-89) years. The study group comprised 22% women and 78% men with known risk factors for atherosclerosis: current tobacco use (30%), hypertension (69%), and diabetes (27%). Seventy-five percent of the SPECT scans demonstrated abnormal regional cerebral perfusions, which were associated with older age (P < .008), current tobacco use (P < .005), and diabetes mellitus (P < .005). The incidence of postoperative cerebral vascular accident was 5% and only occurred in patients with abnormal regional cerebral perfusion.


CONCLUSIONS
Seventy-five percent of patients undergoing coronary bypass grafting have a significant impairment in regional cerebral perfusion compared with published age-matched controls, which may contribute to their proclivity for cerebral complications.
Moraca
Robert
R
Department of General Surgery, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Wash 98107, USA. robert.moraca@vmmc.org
Lin
Eugene
E
Holmes
James H
JH
Fordyce
David
D
Campbell
William
W
Ditkoff
Mary
M
Hill
Mark
M
Guyton
Steven
S
Paull
Daniel
D
Hall
R Alan
RA
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies