Every year, millions of Canadians with coronary artery disease receive treatments to repair the damaged blood vessels that supply blood to their hearts.
Patients receive one of two options: they can undergo a surgical procedure known as coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery to repair the damaged artery. Alternatively, they can receive a non-surgical procedure called a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in which a surgeon inserts a mesh tube to repair the narrowed arteries.
The merits of using one of these procedures over the other is still under debate; however, one clinical study has suggested that CABG is more beneficial for patients with diabetes who had coronary artery disease.
Now, a study led by Dr. Michael Farkouh, Peter Munk Chair in Multinational Clinical Trials at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, supports the notion that CABG the better treatment option. The study, which was carried out at 25 research centres around the world, provided evidence that CABG surgery has a significant advantage over PCI in patients with diabetes by reducing the risk of heart attacks and death.
“Our study report supports the use of CABG surgery over PCT; however the results should not be overly simplified,” explains Dr. Farkouh. “The management of patients with diabetes and coronary disease should still be personalized to include an assessment of surgical risk and benefits as well as patient preferences.”
Dr. Farkouh is supported by the Peter Munk Chair in Multinational Clinical Trials.
Farkouh ME, Domanski M, Dangas GD, Godoy LC, Mack MJ, Siami FS, Hamza TH, Shah B, Stefanini GG, Sidhu MS, Tanguay JF, Ramanathan K, Sharma SK, French J, Hueb W, Cohen DJ, Fuster V; FREEDOM Follow-On study investigators. Long-term Survival following Multivessel Revascularization in Patients with Diabetes (FREEDOM Follow-On Study). J Am Coll Cardiol. 2018 Nov 1. pii: S0735-1097(18)38994-0. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2018.11.001