key: cord-1038003-qbtx7vrd
authors: Benkert, Abigail R.; Jawitz, Oliver K.
title: Commentary: The silver lining of CABG in the COVID-19 era
date: 2021-04-22
journal: JTCVS Open
DOI: 10.1016/j.xjon.2021.04.011
sha: 43d7d28d323cddf410202671fed2245d0654a784
doc_id: 1038003
cord_uid: qbtx7vrd

nan

The global COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruption of healthcare services.

Cardiac surgery, a specialty heavily dependent on intensive care resources, has been especially impacted due to reallocations of these resources including ventilators as well as intensive care beds and staff 1 .

In this issue of the Journal, Parcha and colleagues examine the risk of adverse outcomes among patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery during the initial nine-month period of the COVID-19 pandemic 2 . This retrospective cross-sectional analysis compared clinical outcomes of patients undergoing CABG from 26 healthcare organizations during pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 study periods. The primary endpoint evaluated was mortality within 30 days. Secondary endpoints included stroke, acute kidney injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and prolonged mechanical ventilation. During the 2020 COVID-19 study period, there was a 36% decline in CABG case volume. Propensity-score matching of 3,569 patient pairs revealed similar odds of mortality by 30 days. The odds of secondary outcomes in the matched pairs were also similar. The investigators concluded that while CABG volume declined during the pandemic, CABG has been performed safely, despite the resource limitations encountered during the pandemic.

The impact of COVID-19 on the provision of cardiac surgical services

Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery Outcomes in the United States: Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic

The surge after the surge: cardiac surgery post-COVID-19

The effect of COVID-19 on Adult Cardiac Surgery in the United States: Analysis of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database