Serum aspartate transaminase changes following open-heart surgery with ischaemic arrest (with and without coronary artery perfusion).

Patients with aortic disease irrespective of whether they had coronary perfusion or not showed a significant difference in the level of postoperative SGOT levels compared with other groups. Aortics with coronary perfusion did not show a correlation between SGOT levels and total perfusion time while the other groups did. The levels were not of prognostic significance.