Search

Background: As surgical techniques continue to evolve, the optimal approach for revascularizing multi-vessel coronary artery disease (CAD) remains a matter of ongoing debate. Accordingly, our objective was to compare and contrast various surgical techniques utilized in the management of multi-vessel CAD. Methods: A systematic literature review was performed using PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane central register of controlled trials from inception to May 2022. Random-effects network meta-analysis was performed for the primary outcome; target vessel revascularization (TVR), and secondary outcomes; mortality, major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events, postoperative myocardial infarction, new-onset atrial fibrillation, stroke, new-onset dialysis, in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with a stent, off-pump coronary bypass graft, on-pump coronary artery bypass graft (ONCABG), hybrid coronary revascularization, minimally-invasive coronary artery bypass, or robot-assisted coronary artery bypass (RCAB) surgeries. Results: A total of 8841 patients were included from 23 studies. The analysis showed that ONCABG had the highest freedom from TVR, with a mean (SD) absolute risk of 0.027 (0.029); although ONCABG was found to be superior to all other methods, it was only significantly better than first-generation stent PCI. While RCAB did not demonstrate significant superiority over other treatments, it showed a greater probability of preventing postoperative complications. Notably, no significant heterogeneity was calculated for any of the reported outcomes. Conclusions: ONCABG shows a better rank probability compared to all other techniques for preventing TVR, while RCAB offers greater freedom from most postoperative complications. However, given the absence of randomized controlled trials, these results should be interpreted with caution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Few studies have looked at the predictors of use of home sphygmomanometers among hypertensive patients in low-income countries such as Pakistan. Considering the importance of home blood pressure monitoring (HBPM), cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the prevalence and predictors of the usage of all kinds of HBPM devices., Method: This study was conducted in Karachi during the time period of January-February 2017. Adult patients previously diagnosed with hypertension visiting tertiary care hospitals were selected for the study. Interviews from the individuals were conducted after verbal consent using a pre-coded questionnaire. The data was analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences v. 23.0 (SPSS, IBM Corporation, NY, USA). Chi-squared test was applied as the primary statistical test., Results: More than half of the participants used a home sphygmomanometer (n=250, 61.7%). The age, level of education, family history of hypertension, compliance to drugs and blood pressure (BP) monitoring, few times a month at clinics were significant determinants of HBPM (P values < 0.001). It was found that more individuals owned a digital sphygmomanometer (n=128, 51.3%) as compared to a manual type (n=122, 48.8%). Moreover, avoiding BP measurement in a noisy environment was the most common precaution taken (n=117, 46.8%)., Conclusion: The study showed that around 40% of the hypertensive individuals did not own a sphygmomanometer and less than 25% performed HBPM regularly. General awareness by healthcare professionals can be a possible factor which can increase HBPM., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.