Internal Mammary Artery Grafting for Coronary Hypoperfusion in Children

Background: Pediatric coronary artery bypass is performed for ischemic complications of Kawasaki disease, congenital coronary anomalies, and iatrogenic pediatric coronary artery problems. Methods: We performed myocardial revascularization using the internal mammary artery in 6 children. A review of outcomes is presented here. Patient ages ranged from 7 days to 10 years. Results: There was no operative mortality. All coronary bypass grafts were patent at 3 months to 3 years postoperatively. No patient had recurrent angina or showed signs of myocardial ischemia. Conclusion: Internal mammary artery bypass grafting can be successfully performed in infants and children with good results. Long-term patency and growth of the anastomosis of the distal vessel are not clear, but good clinical and angiographic results have been reported even after 25 years.