BEIJING, July 16 (Xinhuanet) -- Heart bypass surgery technique to remove a leg vein through small incision to create detours around clogged heart arteries may raise the risk of death, according to a new study.

    Thirteen years ago, the vein was taken out through a long incision, sometimes groin to toe. However, recently, doctors started trying a less invasive removal method where the vein was simply pulled out from a small hole.

    The study published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine finds those who have the small incision method are more likely to die or suffer a cardiac arrest over the next three years.

    The likely reason is that the vein suffers damage from being pulled out and doesn't hold up well over time.

    The study involved 3,014 patients who had either the endoscopic or traditional vein-grafting techniques during heart bypass surgery. The data came from a separate clinical trial in 2002 and 2003 whose purpose was to determine if an experimental drug developed by Anesiva Inc., a South San Francisco, California-based biotechnology company, was effective at preventing failed vein grafts.

    Patients who had the endoscopic procedure were 45 percent more likely to have a vein- graft failure that required repeat surgery. Endoscopy patients had a 38 percent greater risk of dying or having a heart attack, and a 52 percent greater risk of death alone than with the traditional method, the study found.

    "This is a very worrisome finding," said Dr. Timothy Gardner, a heart surgeon at Christiana Care Health Services in Wilmington, Del., and former American Heart Association president.

    "More research is needed to confirm the results, but doctors probably should use the technique more sparingly or handle the vein more carefully when they do pull it out," Gardner said.

    (Agencies)