Propensity Matching Is a Poor Substitute for a Poorly Composed Procedure Note

• Published in: Journal of the American College of Cardiology Vol. 61; no. 3; pp. 311 - 312
• Main Author: Jones, Robert H., MD
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 22.01.2013; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Cardiology; Cardiovascular; Cardiovascular disease; Coronary Artery Bypass - methods; Coronary Artery Disease - surgery; coronary disease; Coronary vessels; Female; Humans; Internal Medicine; internal thoracic artery; Male; Mammary Arteries - transplantation; Medical records; Ostomy; reoperation; revascularization; survival; reoperation; coronary disease; revascularization; internal thoracic artery; survival
• ISSN: 0735-1097; 1558-3597
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jacc.2012.09.047

(8) produced data convincing the broad cardiac surgical community that the long-term patency of the ITA bypass was superior to that of saphenous vein. [...]the high ITA graft patency conveyed a substantial survival advantage over saphenous vein grafts. If the medical record information content tradition of Halsted had been continued by the cardiac surgery profession into the era of conducting millions of CABG and redo CABG procedures notes worldwide, the list of available responses for structured reporting of reasons for use of saphenous vein and not the ITA at time of redo CABG might include: 1) massive bleeding associated with median sternotomy; 2) peristernal wire from prior CABG occluding left internal thoracic artery; 3) aortic dissection at inflow cannulation site; 4) intramyocardial LAD; 5) ventricular fibrillation before institution of ITA takedown; 6) damage to ITA during takedown from chest wall; 7) patent prior saphenous vein graft to LAD; 8) left internal thoracic artery needed for bypass to more dominant coronary artery; and 9) other reason, specify.