title: Axillary artery to left anterior descending coronary artery bypass with an externally stented graft: a technical report.
abstract: With the proliferation of minimally invasive cardiac surgery a number of alternative inflow sites for coronary artery bypass grafting have been utilized, especially in higher risk patients. The use of axillary-coronary artery bypass is a safe and effective alternative especially in the case of patients requiring redo coronary revascularization. However, the length and convoluted course of the axillary-coronary vein graft makes is susceptible to twisting, trauma and neointimal hyperplasia. We therefore report a case of an axillary-coronary artery bypass in a high risk patient in which a Dacron conduit was used to externally support and protect the vein graft to the left anterior descending artery. Surgical technique and considerations are presented and discussed.
authors.affiliation: Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, Department of Surgical, Oncology and Technology, St, Mary's Hospital, London, UK. t.athanasiou@imperial.ac.uk
authors.forename: Thanos
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Athanasiou
authors.forename: Emmanouil I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Kapetanakis
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.forename: Loris
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Salvador
authors.forename: Ara
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Darzi
mesh_terms: D000787:Angina Pectoris / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D001366:Axillary Artery / Q000601:surgery*; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000379:methods*; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000601:surgery*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015607:Stents