Clinical Features of Elderly Patients Submitted to Coronary Artery Bypass Graft

OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical features as well as morbidity and mortality of elderly patients submitted to coronary artery bypass graft (CABG). DESIGN: Randomized, single-center, observational study. METHODS: A prospective study was carried out in a tertiary referral teaching hospital (Heart Institute-Brazil). A total of 220 inpatients submitted to elective CABG were evaluated and data collected from the pre-, intra- and postoperative periods. INSTRUMENTS: The patients were assessed according to the Geriatric Depression Scale. A diagnosis of delirium was determined according to DSM-IV criteria. RESULTS: Of these 220 patients 64.5% were males and 35.5% females. The mean age was 71 years. The most important preoperative findings were a higher incidence of comorbidities such as hypertension (73%), diabetes mellitus (35%), dyslipidemia (27%), and previous myocardial infarction (41%). The majority of patients were found to have three or more vessels obstructed at angiography (74%). The major intraoperative findings were that a high number of the patients received more than 3 grafts (74%). A large proportion (72%) of patients needed a blood transfusion and the overall incidence of clinical complications was 33%. The overall postoperative mortality rate for this observational study was 5%. A large number of patients presented complications (56%) such as hypotension (22%), atrial fibrillation (22%), and delirium (34%). CONCLUSIONS: Although elderly patients have a somewhat increased, however acceptable, operative mortality rate, we believe that this patient group can benefit from CABG.