Background: This study investigated whether off-pump coronary bypass graft operations on the beating heart under normothermic conditions reduces the systemic oxidative stress and inflammatory reaction seen in patients operated under cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB).
Methods: A cardiac stabilizer (Octopus Tissue Stabilizer; Medtronic Inc, Minneapolis, MN) was used to perform the coronary anastomoses on the normothermic beating heart with or without CPB. Serial blood samples were taken at various intervals. Plasma was analyzed for several oxidative stress and inflammatory markers.
Results: Significant increases from prior anesthesia values of lipid hydroperoxides (190% at 4 hours), protein carbonyls (250% at 0.5 hours) and nitrotyrosine (510% at 0.5 hours) were seen in the CPB group, but they were abolished or significantly reduced in the off-pump group. Complement C3a and elastase levels were rapidly increased upon the institution of CPB, and this was followed by increases in IL-8, TNF-alpha, and sE-selectin. In contrast, the rise of these factors was blunted in patients operated without CPB.
Conclusions: Off-pump coronary bypass graft operation on a beating heart significantly reduces oxidative stress and suppresses the inflammatory reaction associated with the use of CPB.