Establishment of a Secondary Prevention Program for Coronary Bypass...
Establishment of a Secondary Prevention Program for Coronary Bypass...
To treat atherosclerosis systemically in the surgical patient, proper drug therapy and risk factor modification are necessary. A secondary prevention program for coronary bypass patients was established at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine for that purpose. Modifiable risk factors, such as hypercholesterolemia and hypertension, are identified preoperatively, and therapy is initiated postoperatively, with follow-up in the Risk Reduction Clinic at 3 and 6 months. Treatment is designed to achieve defined goals in secondary prevention.
Atherosclerosis should be viewed as a systemic vascular disease that is diffuse and progressive. Surgical therapy, such as coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), may alleviate symptoms and, in some patients, prolong life, but the atherosclerotic process is not interrupted. Systemic drug therapy is necessary to delay the progression of atherosclerosis.
Although most patients who undergo CABG have angina pectoris, and about one half have had a myocardial infarction, secondary preventive measures after CABG are often neglected, particularly lipid-lowering drug therapy. To rectify this undertreatment, a Risk Reduction Clinic was established for all patients who undergo CABG. This report describes the protocol, which was started on August 1, 1998.
To treat atherosclerosis systemically in the surgical patient, proper drug therapy and risk factor modification are necessary. A secondary prevention program for coronary bypass patients was established at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine for that purpose. Modifiable risk factors, such as hypercholesterolemia and hypertension, are identified preoperatively, and therapy is initiated postoperatively, with follow-up in the Risk Reduction Clinic at 3 and 6 months. Treatment is designed to achieve defined goals in secondary prevention.
Atherosclerosis should be viewed as a systemic vascular disease that is diffuse and progressive. Surgical therapy, such as coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), may alleviate symptoms and, in some patients, prolong life, but the atherosclerotic process is not interrupted. Systemic drug therapy is necessary to delay the progression of atherosclerosis.
Although most patients who undergo CABG have angina pectoris, and about one half have had a myocardial infarction, secondary preventive measures after CABG are often neglected, particularly lipid-lowering drug therapy. To rectify this undertreatment, a Risk Reduction Clinic was established for all patients who undergo CABG. This report describes the protocol, which was started on August 1, 1998.
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