The radial artery: Which place in coronary operation?

Previous long-term studies have shown unsatisfactory patency of saphenous vein grafts, compared with internal mammary artery grafts. Recently, the use of the radial artery as a coronary artery bypass graft has enjoyed a revival, on the basis of the belief that it will help improving long-term results of coronary operations. The recent report of encouraging 5-year patency rates, sup-ports its continued use as a bypass graft. In this paper, we review the current knowledge about the radial artery as a bypass graft, with special emphasis on the clinical results. (C) 2000 by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons.