Clinical outcome of urgent coronary artery bypass grafting

Urgent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) has a higher mortality rate than elective CABG. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcome of urgent CABG. From July 1992 to May 2005, 104 patients underwent urgent CABG. All patients required an urgent surgical revascularization within 24 hr of diagnostic coronary angiography. In-hospital mortality after urgent CABG was 17.3% (18/104). We compared preoperative characteristics and postoperative clinical outcomes between the survival group (n=86) and the mortality group (n=18). The mean age was 61.7 yr (range, 35-83). The most common cause of mortality was low cardiac output. The independent preoperative risk factors of mortality included advanced age (>70 yr) (OR=3.998, p=0.046), preoperative shock status (OR=6.542, p=0.011), and low ejection fraction (