title: Despite modern off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting women fare worse than men.
abstract: Female gender is an established risk factor for worse outcomes after cardiac surgery. Avoiding cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) for coronary bypass grafting has an unknown effect on gender differences. Herein, we evaluate if gender has an impact on outcomes after modern off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB). From 2002 to 2007, we analyzed 983 patients (male: n=807/female: n=176) who underwent OPCAB with symptomatic multi-vessel disease at our institution. The link between gender and outcome was assessed by multivariate analysis and logistic regression. A composite endpoint was constructed from: 30-day-mortality, renal failure, prolonged intensive care unit (ICU) stay, neurological complications, use of intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) and conversion to CPB. Mortality was 3.2% in women vs.1.8% in men (P=0.15) and the EuroSCORE was significantly correlated to gender (6.8 vs. 5.2; P<0.001), even after correction (P=0.036). Significant more occurrence of the composite endpoint was noted in women (39.8% vs. 29.0%; P=0.007) whereas for men the risk was much lower [odds ratio (OR) 0.65; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.46-0.92; P=0.015]. For both genders the logistic regression revealed a risk increase of 15% per one-point-increase of EuroSCORE (corrected) (OR 1.15; 95% CI: 1.10-1.19; P<0.0001). Women had more frequently a prolonged stay at ICU (P=0.006) and had a higher stroke rate (2.3% vs. 1.2%; P=0.29). Complete revascularization was achieved similarly (95% vs. 94%; P=0.93). OPCAB offers low mortality and excellent clinical outcome. Women are more likely to experience postoperative complications. Even if partially neutralized by avoiding CPB, gender differences remain present with modern OPCAB strategies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac and Vascular Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Maximilian Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Emmert
authors.forename: Sacha P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Salzberg
authors.forename: Burkhardt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Seifert
authors.forename: Ulrich P
authors.initials: UP
authors.lastname: Schurr
authors.forename: Dragan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Odavic
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Reuthebuch
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Genoni
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002423:Cause of Death; D015331:Cohort Studies; D017023:Coronary Angiography / Q000379:methods; D047549:Coronary Artery Bypass, Off-Pump / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods / Q000401:mortality*; D023921:Coronary Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006084:Graft Rejection; D006085:Graft Survival; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D007431:Intraoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality; D007902:Length of Stay; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016019:Survival Analysis