Objectives: To avoid myocardial ischemia in off-pump coronary artery bypass, we developed a coronary active perfusion system (CAPS). The purposes of this study were to investigate the changes in myocardial blood flow and tissue oxygenation during CAPS perfusion, and to validate the ventricular arrhythmias and hemodynamic deterioration preventing the effect.
Methods: Sixteen pigs were divided into a CAPS perfusion group (group C) and a simple coronary occlusion group (group O). The left anterior descending coronary artery was snared in both groups and 30 min of CAPS perfusion was performed in group C.
Results: Ventricular arrhythmias were not observed in group C, but occurred in seven out of eight pigs in group O (P=0.003). None of the hemodynamic variables changed in group C, but they deteriorated in group O. Myocardial blood flow, saturation, and hemoglobin plus myoglobin concentration were maintained with a baseline level in group C, but decreased significantly in group O (P<0.001).
Conclusion: CAPS is a reliable method to avoid myocardial ischemia during coronary occlusion and it may be useful for off-pump coronary artery bypass