In an isolated bypass, no other major heart procedure is performed at the same time. During 1996 and 1997, surgeons performed bypass operations on 16,548 patients and 557 patients died in the hospital during or after surgery. In 1994-1995, there were 544 deaths among the 14,510 surgeries performed. To get a clearer picture of changes in the statewide system of cardiac care, the department also analyzed all four years data and risk-adjusted it to account for the patient population's changing health status. That showed that the death rate should have risen over the years, because patients were sicker going into surgery.
Several factors can influence the outcome of bypass surgery.
Among these risk factors are the patient's age and sex, underlying health problems and history of prior heart surgery. These are among the factors considered when risk-adjusting data. The cardiac surgery report released today covers a two-year period. The cardiac surgery report also lists individual results for 50 surgeons who performed at least 100 procedures at one hospital during the two-year period. Last year, the department adopted regulations phasing in a 100-procedure minimum for surgeons.