Background: The Coronary Artery Revascularization Prophylaxis (CARP) Trial was a multicenter randomized study that showed no long-term survival benefit with revascularization prior to elective vascular surgery in patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD). To determine whether subsets with high-risk anatomy benefited from preoperative revascularization, survival was determined in randomized and registry patients who underwent coronary angiography within 6 months of vascular surgery.
Methods: Over a 4-year enrollment period, 4,876 patients were screened prior to vascular surgery and 1,048 (21.5%) had preoperative coronary angiography for either multiple cardiac risks or an abnormal preoperative stress test. The cohort included 462 randomized and 586 excluded patients and the probability of survival was determined at 2.5 years following vascular surgery.
Results: Of 1,048 patients with preoperative coronary angiography, non-obstructive disease (< 70%) was present in 192 (18.3%) and 1 vessel disease (VD) was present in 244 (23.3%), with a combined survival of 0.84. Previous bypass surgery (CABG) was present in 225 (21.5%), with a survival of 0.78. High risk coronary anatomy in patients without prior CABG included 2-VD in 204 (19.5%), 3-VD in 130 (12.4%) and an unprotected left main stenosis > 50% in 48 (4.6%) patients. Their long-term survival according to the preoperative revascularization status is shown in the Table
.
Conclusions: The results demonstrate that an unprotected left main stenosis was present in 4.6% of high-risk patients presenting for vascular surgery and was the only anatomical subset that demonstrated a survival benefit with preoperative revascularization prior to vascular surgery. These data may warrant additional strategies to identify patients with unprotected left main disease either prior to or immediately following vascular surgery.
Long-Term Probability of Survival at 2.5 Years Following Vascular Surgery
Putting the 2021 ACC/AHA/SCAI Guideline for Coronary Artery Revascularization Into Practice
