Abstract
Background
Approximately 60% of patients with chronic occlusive peripheral arterial disease have severe coronary disease and the principal cause of death during the postoperative period after major vascular surgery is acute myocardial infarction.
Objectives
To determine the prevalence of coronary disease among patients scheduled for elective major vascular surgery and its relationship with postoperative cardiological complications.
Methods
A total of 200 patients who underwent elective vascular arterial surgery for obstructive carotid disease, aortoiliac and distal femoropopliteal disease and aneurysmal disease of the abdominal aorta and iliac arteries were analyzed. These patients were allocated to three groups: group I, free from coronary disease; group II, asymptomatic coronary disease; and group III, symptomatic coronary disease. The cardiological complications analyzed were fatal and nonfatal acute myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, cardiogenic shock, acute atrial fibrillation and other arrhythmias.
Results
Cardiac complications occurred in 11 patients (5.5%): three nonfatal acute myocardial infarctions (1.5%), all in patients from group III. The most common cardiac complication was arrhythmia (excluding atrial fibrillation) in five (2.5%) patients, three from group II. Early mortality was nine patients (4.5%). Just one death was caused by a cardiac problem: cardiogenic shock in a patient from group III.
Conclusions
Coronary disease was not predictive of death among patients who underwent major peripheral vascular surgery. There were no statistical differences in survival between patients with or without coronary disease.
Keywords:
vascular peripheral diseases; coronary disease; vascular surgery; postoperative complications