“No-Touch” versus “Endo” Vein Harvest: Early Patency on Symptom-Directed Catheterization and Harvest Site Complications:

Objective“No-touch” (NT) saphenous veinharvesting preserves the adventitial vasa vasorum, prevents medial ischemia, and is associated with an improved short-term and long-term veingraft patency. It may also be associated with a higher rate of harvest site complications. Endovascular veinharvesting (endo- vein) has a low rate of harvest site complications but also a tendency toward a lower patency rate.MethodsDuring a 2-year period (2011–2012), we compared the veingraft patency at symptom-directed cardiac catheterizationas well as wound complication rates in 210 patients who received either NT (87 patients) or endo- vein(123 patients).ResultsThe recatheterization rate for the two groups was similar: 9 (10.3%) of 87 of the NT patients versus 11 (9.0%) of 123 of the endo- veinpatients. There was a significant difference in veingraft patency between the groups: 15 (94%) of 16 NT veingrafts were patent versus 6 (27%) of 22 of endo- veins(P < 0.02). The endo- veingraft patency during this 2-year period wa...