Summary A best evidence topic in cardiac surgery was written according to a structured protocol. The question addressed was, ‘in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting is semi-skeletonized harvesting superior to pedicled harvesting of the left internal mammary artery (LIMA) in terms of conduit length, flow, rate of sternal wound infections and post-operative bleeding?’. Altogether, 235 papers were found using the reported search, of which 5 represented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. Three studies were cohort studies and 2 were randomized controlled trials. The authors, journal, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes and results of these papers are tabulated. One randomized controlled trial showed superiority with semi-skeletonized harvesting in terms of conduit length (P