Advantages:

1.                  Less post-operative bleeding.

2.                  Fewer blood transfusions.

3.                  Lower mortality and cerebro-vascular events in the at-risk population.

4.                  Safer in women.

What is off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery?

The Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center is among the Israeli and world leaders in beating heart coronary artery bypass surgery.  To date, over 1500 such operations have been performed in our department with excellent results.

Beating heart surgery is especially safe for the high risk patient population and elderly patients.

During 2004, approximately 60% of the coronary artery bypass surgical procedures performed in our department were off-pump operations.

Use of the cardio-pulmonary bypass machine during coronary artery bypass surgery necessitates passage of blood through a "foreign" installation system, which harms the functioning of some of the blood components, and sometimes causes post-operative coagulation problems and bleeding.  Use of the cardio-pulmonary bypass machine also requires "connection" to the large blood vessels, which increases the risk of brain emboli, despite all the cautionary means taken meticulously during surgery.

Off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery has been found, according to several papers, to be a safe procedure that does not limit the number of anastomoses performed, decreases the post-operative bleeding, significantly decreases the need for blood transfusions, and reduces the frequency of post-operative cerebro-vascular events in populations at risk.

In addition, scientific reports claim that off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery is associated with a lower rate of complications.

Additional information regarding beating heart coronary artery bypass surgery (OPCAB)

Video Clips:

Arterial anastomosis on a beating heart - 53 sec.

Articles in the field of beating heart surgery - PDF version:

Bilateral versus single internal thoracic artery grafting in oral-treated diabetic subsets: comparative seven-year outcome analysis.  Lev-Ran O et al, Ann Thorac Surg 2004; 77:2039-45.

Dept. of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center