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Background: Various postoperative predictive markers following cardiovascular surgery have been examined for use in the current aging population. The controlling nutritional status (CONUT) score, which is advocated not only as a screening tool for poor nutritional status, but also as an immunonutritional assessment, has started to attract attention in several clinical settings, such as in cancer and heart failure patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the value of the CONUT score as a postoperative prognostic marker in patients who underwent cardiovascular surgery., Methods: A total of 75 patients who underwent elective cardiovascular surgery between January 2015 and October 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups according to their preoperative CONUT score (i.e., CONUT < 2 or CONUT ≥ 2), and their clinicopathological characteristics, surgical outcomes, and overall survival were compared. The median follow-up period was 23 months (range 0-43 months) after surgery., Results: The high CONUT group (CONUT ≥ 2), which consisted of 30 (40.0%) patients, had a significantly worse prognosis than the low CONUT group with regard to overall survival (p = 0.0007). On multivariate analyses, the CONUT score was identified as the only independent prognostic factor for overall survival (hazard ratio 1.47 per 1 CONUT score increase, 95% confidence interval 1.05-2.06, p < 0.026)., Conclusions: The CONUT score is a reliable and independent preoperative predictor of overall survival after cardiovascular surgery.

Objective: We investigated the usefulness of perioperative blood glucose control in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG)., Methods: DM patients were aggressively treated with intensive insulin therapy to achieve a preoperative fasting blood glucose level of 140 mg/dl and a postoperative level of 200 mg/dl. For comparison, patients were divided as follows: (1) DM group vs. non-DM group, and (2) for mean blood glucose level in the intensive care unit (ICU), lower than 200 mg/dl (IL) vs. 200 mg/dl or higher (IH)., Results: (1) In the DM group, the amount of insulin (U) used during surgery was greater (P<0.05), and the duration of ICU stay was longer (P<0.05). The incidence of all complications was higher in the DM group (P<0.05). (2) Between the IH group (54) and the IL group (82), the proportion of DM patients was higher in the IH group (75% vs. 38%, P<0.05). In the IH, the duration of ICU stay (P<0.01) was longer, and the incidence of all complications was higher (P<0.05). (3) In the DM group, the incidence of complications tended to be higher in the IH group. The incidence of complications was extremely low in the non-DM group., Conclusion: Strict perioperative blood glucose control may help to improve the outcomes of CABG.