Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG)Surgery is commonly used to treat patients with coronary artery disease (atherosclerosis) for the relief of angina (chest pain) and improve heart muscle function. Healthy veins or arteries, referred to as 'conduits' from elsewhere in the patient's body, are grafted (attached) from the aorta to the coronary arteries, bypassing (via new routes) coronary artery narrowings caused by atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) and thereby improving the blood supply to the myocardium (heart muscle). Over the years, a range of different veins and arteries from around the body have been used to bypass diseased coronary arteries. Typically, internal thoracic arteries from behind the breastbone and the saphenous veins from the legs are used for bypass. More recently, radial arteries from the forearm have also been used to bypass coronary arteries that are diseased (atherosclerotic). There is strong evidence to indicate that the left internal thoracic artery stays open the longest (i.e. has the highest patency) and achieves the best health outcomes. As a result, most cardiac surgeons use the left internal thoracic artery as their first choice of conduit (vessel used to bypass the blocked artery). However, many patients require multiple grafts and there is little evidence as to which grafts are the best conduits to use. It has been suggested that the radial arteries might function better than saphenous veins as conduits. The Radial Artery Patency and Clinical Outcomes Trial(RAPCO) aims to compare patency of the radial arteries with the right internal thoracic artery and also with the saphenous vein.
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Graft patency on all surviving trial patients.
Timeframe: Between 1-10 years from CABG surgery.