Background The SYNTAX score is a helpful tool for determining the optimal myocardial revascularization strategy in complex coronary artery disease. The aim of this study was to assess whether the SYNTAX score predicts postoperative mortality in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting. Methods The study included 1100 consecutive patients referred for coronary artery bypass graft surgery over a 4-year period. Angiographic data were interpreted by both experienced intervention cardiologists and cardiac surgeons. The patients were divided into three groups based on SYNTAX score tertiles: low ≤22 ( n = 560), intermediate 23–32 ( n = 360), and high ≥33 ( n = 180). Results Compared to patients with a low SYNTAX score, those with intermediate and high scores were significantly older ( p < 0.001), had a lower left ventricular ejection fraction ( p < 0.001), higher pulmonary artery pressure ( p < 0.001), and higher incidences of acute coronary syndrome and left main coronary artery disease. A significantly higher EuroSCORE ( p = 0.003) was also observed in patients with a higher SYNTAX score. Patients with intermediate and high SYNTAX scores had higher 5-year mortality rates (18.6% and 19.5%, respectively) than patients with low SYNTAX scores (9.5%, p < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, SYNTAX score was not an independent predictor of late mortality. Conclusion Although SYNTAX score is not independently predictive of late mortality in patients with complex coronary artery disease undergoing myocardial revascularization surgery, patients with lower SYNTAX scores had a lower mortality rate after coronary artery bypass graft surgery.
Study design for a randomized crossover study investigating myocardial strain analysis in patients with coronary artery disease at hyperoxia and normoxemia prior to coronary artery bypass graft surgery (StrECHO-O2)
