IJCS | Volume 31, Nº2, March / April 2018

DOI: 10.5935/2359-4802.20170099 Abstract Background: By observing the high prevalence of failures in the surgical treatment of myocardial revascularization (MR), with the use of the Left Internal Thoracic Artery (LITA) as a graft, evidenced by the international literature, it was sought to demonstrate the prevalence of lesions that would not allow the use of LITA as a graft in myocardial revascularization surgery, with possible alteration in the surgical management performed by the cardiac surgeon, and reduction of the morbimortality of these patients. Objectives: To evaluate the prevalence of atherosclerotic lesions of the LITA, through selective preoperative angiography, in patients submitted to coronary angiography and indicated for myocardial revascularization. We also analyzed other lesions that made the use of LITA unfeasible as a main graft in cases of myocardial revascularization surgery (MRS). Methods: This was a cross-sectional, prevalence study that evaluated, through selective angiography, the LITA of 39 patients with a median age of 63 years, submitted to coronary angiography, with indication of Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG). Categorical variables were compared by chi-square test and Fisher's exact test. The single continuous variable, age, was tested for normality by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, described in median (P25; P75) and the groups compared with the Mann-Whitney test. The level of statistical significance adopted was p < 0.05. The analyzes were performed in SPSS ® software version 20. Results: It was identified the presence of 7.7% of disorders in the LITA that made it unfeasible to be used. In all of the patients there was no specific symptomatology evidencing the lesion. No variable was shown as a predictor for the occurrence of the outcomes. Conclusion: The prevalence of the lesions found in the study was significant, indicating that a preoperative evaluation of LITA could bring future benefits to the patients submitted to CABG. (Int J Cardiovasc Sci. 2018;31(2)97-106) Keywords: Atherosclerosis; Myocardial Revascularization; Mammary Arteries; Coronary Angiography. 97 International Journal of Cardiovascular Sciences. 2018;31(2)97-106 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Mailing Address: Hadrien Felipe Meira Balzan Avenida Guedner, s/n. Postal Code: 87050-390, Jardim Aclimação, Maringá, PR – Brazil. E-mail: hadrien.fel2@hotmail.com Prevalence of Atherosclerotic Lesions in the Left Internal Thoracic Artery, Evidenced by Selective Angiographic Findings Hadrien Felipe Meira Balzan, 1 Rafael Vinicius Lube Battilani, 1 Otávio Celeste Mangili, 1 Marcos Franchetti, 2 Leonardo Celeste Mangili, 3 Julio de Paiva Maia, 2 Dorane Dias de Moura, 1 Bruna Felipe de Melo Lage 4 Centro Universitário de Maringá (CESUMAR), 1 Centro de Diagnósticos Paraná – Cedipar, 2 Cardioclínica Maringá, 3 PR, Centro Universitário de Várzea Grande (UNIVAG), 4 Várzea Grande, MT – Brazil Manuscript received November 23, 2016; revised manuscript June 09, 2017; accepted July 07, 2017. Introduction Among the principal means available for the diagnosis of atherosclerotic coronary disease, coronary angiography, an invasive imaging method, is the choice to examinate the evaluationof patientswithhigh cardiovascular risk, calculated through non-invasive scores. Coronary angiography is also indicated in patients who present angina and symptoms of heart failure, and these recommendations are based on a high degree of evidence. 1 After the diagnosis of coronary artery disease is established, and according to the characteristics perceived by analyzing the images, three main therapeutic approaches are recommended: clinical treatment, percutaneous coronary intervention, and myocardial revascularization surgery.