Background
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one of the most common complications after cardiac surgery. It occurs mostly between the second and the third postoperative day. The aim of this study was to compare the distribution of the incidence of AF between patients operated upon with the standard on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and off-pump CABG techniques.
Materials and methods
This was a prospective analysis of 173 patients with coronary artery disease operated upon at the Dar Al Fouad Hospital and the National Heart Institute. Eighty-five patients undergoing off-pump CABG were matched for age and number of distal anastomoses with another 88 patients undergoing on-pump CABG. The possible risk factors for postoperative new-onset AF were recorded.
Results
AF occurred in 42 (24.3%) of the 173 patients for whom data could be analyzed. AF occurred in 19 patients (22.4%) in the off-pump group versus 23 (26.14%) in the on-pump group, but this difference was not statistically significant. On univariate analysis, age and serum creatinine levels were found to be the significant risk factors for the occurrence of AF. In a multivariate analysis that included operative technique, age was found to be the only significant risk factor. Also, the length of hospital stay was significantly longer in the on-pump group ( < 0.05).
Conclusion
The occurrence of AF after CABG does not depend on the type of operation of CABG.