Health-Related Quality of Life Five Years After Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery

Coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) is performed to reduce cardiac mortality and to relieve patient's symptoms of CAD and prolong lives. Health related quality of live (HRQL) is a sensitive tool to asses the outcome of CABG surgery in terms of patient's postoperative functionality.The aim of our study was to detremine HRQL of our patients and to determine variables that have an impact on impaired or unimpaired HRQL, based on the completion of the short form health questionnaire (SF-36). The study population included 140 patients who underwent CABG surgery during 2007, age range 43-83 years. Demographic data, clinical characteristics and co- morbidity were collected. Good or exellent health was reported 62% of patients. Limited performance during vigorous activities was reported 62, 9% of patients, while only 20% of them reported limited performance during moderate activities. Physical health or emotional problems didn't interfere with their normal social activities in 73%. Based on SF-36 answers we identified two groups of patients, first with unimpaired, and second with impaired HRQL after CABG surgery. Overall HRQL is unimpaired for most of the patients. There were no significant predictors for impaired or unimpaired HRQL. We identified variables that are associated with specific HRQL outcoms, which could be used as preoperative assessment and to improve patient's outcomes.