Left or bilateral internal mammary artery employment in coronary artery bypass grafting: midterm results

Background The gold standard for coronary artery bypass grafting to the left anterior descending artery is use of the left internal mammary artery. Better long-term survival has been reported using bilateral internal mammary arteries compared to left internal mammary artery only, but many surgeons are reluctant to employ bilateral internal mammary arteries in coronary artery bypass grafting. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of bilateral internal mammary artery use. Methods From 2014 to 2017, 1703 patients underwent coronary artery bypass grafting in our institute. Of these, 772 met the inclusion criteria and were randomly assigned to receive bilateral ( n = 387) or left ( n = 385) internal mammary artery grafts. The mean age was 67.1 ± 6.0 years (range 48–85 years) and 474 (61.4%) were male. The mean number of diseased vessels was 3.1 ± 0.9, and mean EuroSCORE II was 3.4% ± 1.1%. Results Hospital mortality was 1.2% in the left internal mammary artery group vs. 1.8% in the bilateral internal mammary artery group ( p = 0.55). There was no difference in procedure-related complications between groups. Mean follow-up was 65.9 months. Survival in the bilateral internal mammary artery group at 1, 3, and 5 years was 98.7%, 98.7%, and 94.8% vs. 98.1%, 98.1%, and 90.9%, respectively, in the left internal mammary artery group ( p = 0.63). Conclusion Application of bilateral internal mammary arteries in coronary artery bypass grafting is safe and effective, with comparable midterm results to those with the left internal mammary artery only.