BACKGROUND: Long term patency of arterial graft has been better than venous graft and redo coronary artery bypass grafting has been increasing, therefore, there has been an increasing need for alternative arterial grafts except internal thoracic artery(ITA). MATERIAL AND METHOD: Right gastroepiploic arteries(RGEA) were harvested from 100 patients who had received gastrectomy for gastric cancer or ulcer. ITAs were obtained from 10 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting. The length of RGEA was measured from the pyloric ring. Items of the morphometric and histologic study at the pyloric ring and sites of the 10cm and 20cm RGEA from the pyloric ring were luminal diameter, intimal thickness, medial thickness, wall thickness, degree of intimal hyperplasia, intimal thickness, medial thickness, wall thickness, degree of intimal hyperplasia, intimal thickness index, medial thickness index, and the number of discontinuities of the internal elastic lamina. Similar items were applied to the proximal site of ITAs. RESULT: The length of RGEA was 23+/-2.7cm(range 17~31cm). Comparing the 20cm RGEA with ITA, intimal thickness, medial thickness, wall thickness, and degree of intimal hyperplasia did not show any difference(p>0.05). However, 20cm RGEA was greater than ITA at the luminal diameter, intimal thickness index, and the number thickness and wall thickness in each site of the RGEA(pyloric ring, 10cm, 20cm) decreased from the pyloric ring to the distal sites(p<0.05). The degree of intimal hyperplasia and the number of discontinuities of the internal elastic lamina did not show any difference between the pyloric ring and 10cm, however, those of 20cm were smaller than these sites(p<0.05). RGEA had more number of discontinuities of the internal elastic lamina and rich smooth muscle cells in the media than ITA. CONCLUSION: The length and diameter of RGEA is good enough to reach most of the coronary arteries. Moreover, long term patency of RGEA may be improved, if anastomosed in the distal site.
Coronary Artery Bypass* ; Coronary Vessels* ; Gastrectomy ; Gastroepiploic Artery* ; Humans ; Hyperplasia ; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle ; Phenobarbital ; Stomach Neoplasms ; Transplants ; Ulcer

Background: Hematocrit is usually measured from venous blood collected by invasive venipuncture. This study was performed to determine hematocrit accurately and precisely using minimally invasive volumetric absorptive microsampling (VAMS) technique.Such technique is to be applied to determining hematocrit in various clinical settings for the care, including therapeutic drug monitoring, of neonatal or epileptic patients, or patients with high risk of infection or bleeding. Methods: The study was performed using 31 VAMS samples obtained from 21 pancreatic cancer patients. Hematocrit was determined using the values of potassium concentrations obtained from blood in VAMS tips (HctVAMS ). HctVAMS was compared with hematocrit measured from blood collected by venipuncture (HctVP ). The accuracy and precision of HctVAMS in comparison to HctVP were evaluated using BlandAltman plot, Deming regression and mountain plot. Results: Bland-Altman plot displayed a random scattering pattern of the differences between HctVAMS and HctVP with the mean bias of −0.010 and the 95% limit of agreement ranging from −0.063 to 0.044.Deming regression for HctVAMS and HctVP line demonstrated very small proportional and constant biases of 1.04 and −0.003, respectively. Mountain plot exhibited a narrow and symmetrical distribution of the differences with their median of −0.011 and central 95% range from −0.049 to 0.033. Conclusion Hematocrit was accurately and precisely determined using less invasive VAMS technique. Such technique appears to be applicable to determining hematocrit in situations that venipuncture is not favorable or possible.