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Surgical management of aortic valve disease in elderly patients with and without coronary artery disease: influence on quality of life.

AIM
The feasibility of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) concomitant with aortic valve replacement (AVR) is well established. However, its impact on long-term patient-perceived quality of life (QoL) in the elderly remains undefined.


METHODS
Retrospective analysis was conducted on 866 patients 65 years of age and over who underwent AVR between October 1976 and December 1999 with a Carpentier-Edwards porcine bioprosthesis. This cohort was divided between those who underwent isolated AVR (n=438) and those with AVR and concomitant CABG (AVR+CABG; n=428). Mean age was 77.0+/-6.1 years (range, 65 to 91) in the AVR group and 78.2+/-5.5 years (range, 65 to 93) in the AVR+CABG group. QoL was assessed with the Short Form-36 health survey for survivors at follow-up, which was 97% complete.


RESULTS
Operative mortality (OM) was 6.2% (27/438) for the AVR group and 8.9% (38/428) for the AVR+CABG group (P=0.130). The occurrence of hospital complications (P=0.162) and postoperative length of stay (P=0.980) was similar for the 2 groups. Actuarial survival at 10 years was 37.1+/-3.4% for AVR and 38.7+/-4% for AVR+CABG patients (P=0.088). On multivariate analyses, CABG was not a predictor of either OM or long-term survival. QoL was similar for the 2 groups on the summary components: physical health (39.4+/-11.4 versus 40.2+/-12.1; P=0.461) and mental health (50.2+/-10.8 versus 51.9+/-10.1; P=0.103).


CONCLUSIONS
Despite the presence of severe coronary artery disease, CABG preserved the long-term QoL in elderly patients undergoing AVR.