Abstract
BACKGROUND: Asymptomatic episodes of myocardial ischemia in clinically stable patients seem to occur frequently and may hint at a worse prognosis. HYPOTHESIS: This study was undertaken to determine whether surgical patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) have a higher risk of cardiac ischemia during the perioperative period compared with the late postoperative period and compared with patients without CAD. METHODS: In all, 14 patients with and 14 patients without CAD were examined by Holter monitoring during the perioperative and three days later during the postoperative periods for the presence of ST-segment depression as a marker of silent myocardial ischemia. RESULTS: While patients without CAD did not show ST-segment depression, patients with CAD were found to have had 143 episodes of ST-segment depression, 49% in the perioperative and 51% in postoperative recordings. CONCLUSION: Though patients were asymptomatic with antianginal therapy, there were episodes of ST-segment depression indicating silent myocardial ischemia in patients with CAD. Surgical interventions such as transurethral resection of tumors of prostate or bladder did not produce an increase of ischemic burden registered by Holter monitoring.