Risks of Morbidity and Mortality in Dialysis Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery

Abstract

Background —Although dialysis patients are undergoing CABG with increasing frequency, large studies specifically comparing patient characteristics and procedure-related risks in this population have not been performed. Methods and Results —We conducted a regional prospective cohort study of 15 500 consecutive patients undergoing CABG in northern New England from 1992 to 1997. We used multiple logistic regression analysis to examine associations between preoperative dialysis-dependent renal failure and postoperative events and to adjust for potentially confounding variables. The 279 dialysis-dependent renal failure patients (1.8%) were 4.4 times more likely to experience in-hospital mortality than were other CABG patients (12.2% versus 3.0%, respectively; P P P =0.011) and postoperative stroke (4.3% versus 1.7%, respectively; adjusted OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.1 to 3.9; P =0.016), even after controlling for potentially confounding variables. Risks of reexploration for bleeding were similar for patients with and without dialysis-dependent renal failure. Conclusions —Preoperative dialysis-dependent renal failure is a strong independent risk factor for in-hospital mortality and mediastinitis after CABG.