RESUMO
Thirty-six patients with chronic liver diseases [group I], and 32 patients with no liver disease [group II] in need of elective cardiac surgery were studied. After careful clinical, radiological and laboratory investigations, group I was subdivided into group IA well compensated liver patients, asymptomatic, with no or minimal laboratory changes [N =19] and group IB with mild cirrhotic liver[N =17]. Moderately and severely cirrhotic patients were excluded from the study. The numerical values in the postoperative course of group IA and IB were compared with those of group II. Differences between the group were considered significant if the p value was less than 0.05 [ANOVA]. The results revealed a significant increase in the postoperative chest tube drainage, total ventilation time, total intensive care duration and total hospital stay in hepatic patients, especially group IB. The incidence of postoperative morbidity and mortality was significantly higher in group IB compared with IA and group II and in group IA compared with group II