DOES IT MAKE SENSE TO USE 2 INTERNAL THORACIC ARTERIES

Retrospectively, the first 143 patients who were operated on with bila teral internal thoracic arteries (BITA group) were matched with 143 pa tients operated on with only one left internal thoracic artery anastom osed on the left anterior descending artery and additional vein grafts (LITA group) and followed up for a maximum of 8 years. At 5 years fol low-up there were no significant differences in event-free survival be tween the groups. After 8 years, the overall survival was 96% and 92% (not significant [NS]), cardiac survival 99% and 97% (NS), angina-free cardiac survival 51% and 35% (NS), infarction-free cardiac survival 9 5% and 78% (NS), reintervention-free cardiac survival 87% and 88% (NS) , and ail cardiac event-free survival 49% and 31% (NS) for the BITA an d LITA groups, respectively. The incidence of late pulmonary, wound, a nd other complications was comparable. Cox proportional hazards analys is showed that a higher left ventricular end-diastolic pressure and fe male sex were predictors of recurrent angina and late cardiac events. During this intermediate-term follow-up, the use of one or two interna l thoracic arteries was of no value in predicting angina-free or cardi ac event-free survival.