On-pump beating-heart coronary artery bypass grafting in high-risk patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Operative technique for surgical myocardial revascularization in high‐risk patients remains an argument of debate. On‐pump coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) with cardioplegic arrest and off‐pump CABG have intrinsic limitations. The hybrid approach of on‐pump beating‐heart CABG (OPBHC) has been proposed over the years with conflicting results. This systematic review and meta‐analysis intends to summarize the contemporary literature. Methods A literature search was conducted through major electronic databases. The systematic review provided a total of 279 articles, of those 17 studies were included in the present study. Results Compared with on‐pump CABG, OPBHC patients showed a preoperative higher risk profile but had reduced early mortality (risk ratio [RR], 0.59, 95% CI, 0.36‐0.97) and reduced postoperative stroke (RR, 0.60, 95% CI, 0.39‐0.91). Also, interesting trends towards reduced postoperative intra‐aortic balloon pump use (RR, 0.56, 95% CI, 0.31‐1.01) and myocardial infarction (RR, 0.48, 95% CI, 0.22‐1.07) were observed. Baseline characteristics and postoperative complications were similar between OPBHC and off‐pump CABG, but limited data are available. The risk of incomplete revascularization in OPBHC is lower than off‐pump CABG (RR, 0.53, 95% CI, 0.33‐0.87) but higher than conventional on‐pump CABG (RR, 1.71, 95% CI, 1.23‐2.39). Conclusion OPBHC is an effective technique to perform surgical revascularization in high‐risk patients as preventing haemodynamic deterioration and guaranteeing adequate end‐organ perfusion. OPBHC represents an alternative technique to on‐pump and off‐pump CABG, in those cases in which complications deriving from cardioplegic arrest or manipulation of the heart are more likely. For these reasons, OPBHC might be useful in patients with recent myocardial infarction or with left ventricular dysfunction.