Background Single centre studies support No Touch (NT) saphenous vein graft (SVG) harvesting technique. The primary objective of the SUPERIOR SVG study was to determine whether NT versus conventional (CON) SVG harvesting was associated with improved SVG patency 1 year after coronary artery bypass grafting surgery (CABG). Methods Adults undergoing isolated CABG with at least 1 SVG were eligible. CT angiography was performed 1-year post CABG. Leg adverse events were assessed with a questionnaire. A systematic review was performed for published NT graft patency studies and results aggregated including the SUPERIOR study results. Results Two hundred and-fifty patients were randomized across 12-centres (NT 127 versus CON 123 patients). The primary outcome (study SVG occlusion or cardiovascular (CV) death) was not significantly different in NT versus CON (NT: 7/127 (5.5%), CON 13/123 (10.6%), p = 0.15). Similarly, the proportion of study SVGs with significant stenosis or total occlusion was not significantly different between groups (NT: 8/102 (7.8%), CON: 16/107 (15.0%), p = 0.11). Vein harvest site infection was more common in the NT patients 1 month postoperatively (23.3% vs 9.5%, p < 0.01). Including this study’s results, in a meta-analysis, NT was associated with a significant reduction in SVG occlusion, Odds Ratio 0.49, 95% Confidence Interval 0.29–0.82, p = 0.007 in 3 randomized and 1 observational study at 1 year postoperatively. Conclusions The NT technique was not associated with improved patency of SVGs at 1-year following CABG while early vein harvest infection was increased. The aggregated data is supportive of an important reduction of SVG occlusion at 1 year with NT harvesting. Trial registration NCT01047449 . Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13019-019-0887-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background. Individual randomized trials have suggested that everolimus-eluting stents may have improved clinical outcomes compared to paclitaxel-eluting stents, but individual trials are underpowered to examine outcomes such as mortality and very late stent thrombosis. Methods. Medline, Cochrane, and conference proceedings were searched for randomized trials comparing everolimus versus paclitaxel-eluting stents for percutaneous coronary intervention. Results. 6792 patients were included from 4 randomized controlled trials. Stent thrombosis was reduced with everolimus stents versus paclitaxel stents (0.7% versus 2.3%; OR: 0.32; CI: 0.20–0.51; P < 0.00001). The reductions in stent thrombosis were observed in (i) early stent thrombosis (within 30 days) (0.2% versus 0.9%; OR: 0.24; P = 0.0005), (ii) late (day 31–365) (0.2% versus 0.6%; OR: 0.32; P = 0.01), and (iii) very late stent thrombosis (>365 days) (0.2% versus 0.8%; OR: 0.34; P = 0.009). The rates of cardiovascular mortality were 1.2% in everolimus group and 1.6% in paclitaxel group (OR: 0.85; P = 0.43). Patients receiving everolimus-eluting stents had significantly lower myocardial infarction events and target vessel revascularization as compared to paclitaxel-eluting stents. Interpretation. Everolimus compared to paclitaxel-eluting stents reduced the incidence of early, late, and very late stent thrombosis as well as target vessel revascularization.

Background: High-sensitivity cardiac troponin assays have been adopted by many clinical centres worldwide; however, clinicians are uncertain how to interpret the results. We sought to assess the utility of these assays in diagnosing acute myocardial infarction (MI). Methods:We carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies comparing high-sensitivity with conventional assays of cardiac troponin levels among adults with suspected acute MI in the emergency department. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane databases up to April 2013 and used bivariable random-effects modelling to obtain summary parameters for diagnostic accuracy. Results:We identified 9 studies that assessed the use of high-sensitivity troponin T assays (n = 9186 patients). The summary sensitivity of these tests in diagnosing acute MI at presentation to the emergency department was estimated to be 0.94 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.89-0.97); for conventional tests, it was 0.72 (95% CI 0.63-0.79). The summary specificity was 0.73 (95% CI 0.64-0.81) for the high-sensitivity assay compared with 0.95 (95% CI 0.93-0.97) for the conventional assay. The differences in estimates of the summary sensitivity and specificity between the high-sensitivity and conventional assays were statistically significant (p < 0.01). The area under the curve was similar for both tests carried out 3-6 hours after presentation. Three studies assessed the use of high-sensitivity troponin I assays and showed similar results.Interpretation: Used at presentation to the emergency department, the high-sensitivity cardiac troponin assay has improved sensitivity, but reduced specificity, compared with the conventional troponin assay. With repeated measurements over 6 hours, the area under the curve is similar for both tests, indicating that the major advantage of the high-sensitivity test is early diagnosis. Abstract