Ultrasonographic Screening of the Carotid Artery in Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery

Background: The incidence of stroke after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is between 0.9% and 6.7%, which significantly increases in-hospital and out-hospital costs. This study was designed to evaluate the prevalence of significant carotid stenosis and its risk factors in CABG. Methods: In total, 2044 consecutive patients undergoing elective CABG were investigated through a pre-operative duplex scanning of the carotid arteries. The relation of age, sex, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and coronary disease with carotid stenosis was evaluated. Results: The prevalence of carotid stenosis was 7.6%. The multivariate analysis showed that age over 55 and left main coronary disease were significant independent risk factors for carotid stenosis. Female gender, smoking, hypertension, and diabetes were the risk factors in the univariate logistic regression model. Conclusion: carotid stenosis is prevalent in CABG candidates. It seems that age ?55 years and left main coronary disease are the independent risk factors for carotid stenosis in CABG patients.