The past decade in China has heralded a rapid increase in surgical coronary revascularisation, and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) has now been possible in an increasingly high-risk population in China. However, little is known about the current status of CABG surgery in contemporary China. The European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) was introduced to China for risk adjustment in 2000 due to the absence of a local risk prediction model. Now, it is the most widely used risk prediction algorithm in China. Fuwai Hospital, Beijing, China has developed a national multicentre database of CABG patients, named the Chinese CABG Registry Study. We embarked on this study with a view to establishing risk stratification and outcome assessment following CABG in Chinese adults as well as to provide a potential clinical research tool for the future. The database will then serve to validate the widely used EuroSCORE model in Chinese patients and to develop a risk prediction model for Chinese patients undergoing CABG.