Therapeutic Strategies and Future Directions of Management for Patients with a History of Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Who Require Secondary Coronary Revascularization

Secondary coronary revascularizations can be required due to the progression of coronary artery lesions and degeneration of bypass grafts in the long term after initial coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. It is therefore necessary to clarify the clinical characteristics of these patients and how to improve their prognosis. Optimal medical treatments, including medications, smoking cessation, and cardiac rehabilitation, are essential baseline management to prevent the progression of native coronary atherosclerosis and degradation of bypass grafts among all post-CABG patients who undergo secondary coronary revascularization as well as those who undergo initial CABG surgery in order to avoid situations requiring secondary coronary revascularization. All coronary revascularization procedures should be built upon these firm optimal medical treatments. Percutaneous coronary intervention is the current mainstay of secondary coronary revascularization approaches for patients who have symptoms of heart failure or angina pectoris because of the low invasiveness of the technique and no need for re-sternotomy. Redo-CABG is an option, especially for young patients without patency for internal thoracic artery to left anterior descending artery graft. The individualization of these approaches and improvements in medications and coronary revascularization procedures may improve the clinical outcomes and prognosis of this subgroup.