Heparin Use Prior to Endoscopic Vein Harvest Improves Graft Patency in Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypas...( Pre-heparinization Limits Clot Retent...),Health

Pre-heparinization Limits Clot Retention and Decreases Residual Clot Volume

SAN FRANCISCO, June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- MAQUET Cardiovascular LLC announced today that data presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiothoracic Surgery show that administration of a heparin bolus with doses as low as 2500U prior to endoscopic vein harvest (EVH) was associated with improved acute saphenous vein (SV) graft patency in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB). Pre-heparinization was also linked to a significant reduction in the incidence and volume of residual clot strands within the vein.

In EVH, a small incision is made in the leg, through which an endoscope is passed and the vein harvested for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) procedures. This method reduces patient discomfort and scarring.

EVH also significantly reduces wound complications and hastens recovery time compared to traditional techniques that involve a long incision to expose the entire length of the vein.

"In our experience, the impact of pre-heparinization on surgical bleeding is minimal, making it a promising strategy that may improve patient outcomes with minimally invasive vein harvesting," said lead investigator Robert Poston, M.D., Chief, Division of Cardiac Surgery, Boston University.

The prospective study examined acute patency rates in 460 patients that underwent OPCAB using veins acquired through EVH, comparing patients receiving no heparin prior to harvest (n=306) to those who received one of three doses of heparin prior to the procedure (n=181). A subset of the most recent 110 patients underwent catheter-based infrared imaging (OCT) of the full tract of harvested SV in order to measure residual clot within the vein. Overall, vein graft patency was 98.9 percent in patients treated with heparin compared to 95.2 percent in
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