Patrick WL, Bojko M, Han JJ, et al. - Researchers sought to describe how socioeconomic context, in which a patient lives, influences operative management and surgical outcomes following coronary artery bypass grafting. Using a validated index of 17 variables derived from the US census bureau, socioeconomic status was assigned at the block group level to patients who underwent isolated coronary artery bypass grafting at a single institution over a 16-year period. In this study of 6,751 patients, a multivariable analysis indicated a significant association of lower socioeconomic status with increased rates of stroke, renal failure, prolonged ventilation, and composite morbidity or mortality. In addition, low socioeconomic status was significantly linked with poorer long-term adjusted survival as well as with decreased utilization of > 1 arterial conduits.