SERIOUS WOUND INFECTIONS AFTER MINIMALLY INVASIVE CORONARY-BYPASS PROCEDURES

Background. Minimally invasive coronary artery bypass grafting has bec ome an increasingly accepted therapy far selected patients with single -vessel corollary artery disease. Reported morbidity has focused on an astomotic problems, but the occurrence oi: serious wound complications after these procedures has not been well documented. Methods. We revi ewed our institutional experience with 35 patients to look for the inc idence of serious wound complications. Results. Three patients had ser ious wound problems after minithoracotomy for coronary artery bypass g raft procedures. This represents an overall 9% wound morbidity rate an d a 100% rate in the obese women. Conclusions. Wound complications at the incision site after minithoracotomy coronary artery bypass graft p rocedures seem to occur distinctly in obese women with redundant breas ts. (Ann Thorac Surg 1998;66:92-4) (C) 1998 by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons.