Five-Year Follow-Up of the Medicine, Angioplasty, or Surgery Study (MASS) : A Prospective, Randomized Trial of Medical Therapy, Balloon Angioplasty, or Bypass Surgery for Single Proximal Left Anterior Descending Coronary Artery Stenosis

Abstract

Bypass surgery for single-vessel coronary artery disease is associated with a lower incidence of medium-term and long-term events as well as fewer anginal symptoms than that found in the patients who underwent angioplasty or medical therapy. In this study, coronary angioplasty was only superior to medical strategies in relation to the anginal status. However, the 3 treatment regimens yielded a similar incidence of acute myocardial infarction and death. Such information should be useful when choosing the best therapeutic option for similar patients.