Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass: Analysis of 52 Cases and Review of the Literature

This article presents a consecutive monocentric series of 52 patients who underwent off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB), with an average of 3.1 anastomoses per procedure. The results show a 30-day mortality rate of 1.9%, with a conversion to cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) rate of 1.9%. Postoperative outcomes are straightforward, with low rates of inotropic support (1.9%), postoperative myocardial infarction (1.9%), and transfusions (17.3%). The average duration of postoperative ventilation is 6 hours ± 2, and the average length of hospital stay is 11 days. The off-pump coronary artery bypass technique yields good immediate results, even in multi-vessel disease patients with high surgical risk.