Intensive care after minimally invasive and conventional coronary surgery:: a prospective comparison

Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the intensive care course of patients after minimally invasive coronary surgery to conventional coronary artery bypass grafting. Design: Prospective observational study. Setting: Intensive care unit of a university hospital. Patients and participants: One hundred and five patients with two-vessel disease consecutively scheduled for elective coronary bypass surgery were enrolled. Interventions: Two techniques of revascularization were performed: the Octopus procedure via median sternotomy without cardiopulmonary bypass (n = 52) and conventional coronary artery bypass grafting CABG (n = 53). Measurements and results: Three major categories describing the patients' postoperative course were defined: (1) clinical and laboratory findings, i.e., transfusion rate, catecholamine support, duration of ventilation, Simplified Acute Physiology Score II (SAPS II), serum levels of cardiac enzymes and lactic acid; (2) postoperative complications, i.e., incidence of myocardial infarction (MI), atrial fibrillation (AF), and neurological deficits; (3) this category was defined as "the extent of care" as represented by the Therapeutic Intervention Scoring System (TISS), and the length of stay in the ICU and in the hospital. In the Octopus group significantly lower figures were noted for duration of ventilation [6.1(5.5/9.5) vs 10.2(8.2/11.8) hi, cardiac enzymes {CK-MB-Mass [5.1(2.0/8.3) vs 31.3(21.4/39.3) ng/ mi], and lactic acid [2.0(1.5/3.3) vs 3.2(2.2/6.5) mmol/l]}, incidence of AF (2/52 vs 9/53), and neurological deficits (0/52 vs 4/53), TISS score [72(44/83) vs 84(73/93)], LOS in the ICU [2(1/2) vs 2(2/2) days], and in the hospital [6(5/9) vs 9(8/12) days]. Catecholamine support, SAPS II scores, and incidence of MI of each group did not differ significantly. Conclusions: Off-pump coronary surgery via the Octopus technique was superior to conventional CABG regarding the course of patients in the early postoperative period. This implies benefits for the patients and the entire healthcare system.