Is surgery still the preferred option for coronary revascularisation in diabetics with multivessel coronary disease?

In the UK 2.5 million people have diabetes. Three quarters of all deaths in patients with diabetes are caused by coronary artery disease. It has been projected that 25–30% of all revascularisations will be in patients with diabetes by 2010. The choice of optimal revascularisation strategy—coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)—remains controversial. CABG is considered preferable in diabetic patients with multivessel coronary artery disease based primarily on post hoc analysis of the BARI study. While some other studies have also performed subgroup analyses in patients with diabetes, in none was that analysis prespecified. In light of recent developments in the field of revascularisation, with the advent of glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors, use of stents, and the development of off bypass and minimally invasive surgery, the data available to guide treatment in patients with diabetes are in need of reassessment.