WORK STATUS AFTER CORONARY-BYPASS SURGERY - PROSPECTIVE RANDOMIZED STUDY WITH ERGOMETRIC AND ANGIOGRAPHIC CORRELATIONS

  • 1 January 1979
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 206  (1-2) , 61-64
Abstract
The rate of return to work was assessed in patients with coronary heart disease randomly allocated to medical and surgical treatment groups of 50 patients each. Medical (16) and surgical patients (19) were already retired at entry and did not resume work later. Patients (9) (26%) on medical therapy were working at 2 yr follow-up in contrast to 18 (60%) working after bypass surgery (P < 0.05). Functional classification of angina pectoris and exercise tolerance on ergometry were significantly better in the surgical group, especially in the surgical subgroup at work. Repeated postoperative angiographies of the inserted grafts and native vessels disclosed that completeness of revascularization was related to work status after bypass surgery. A combination of coronary bypass surgery and medical therapy when indicated evidently is superior to medical therapy alone in influencing the rate of working in coronary heart disease.

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