Management of patients with concomitant coronary and carotid vascular disease

Stroke is a major complication of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. Carotid stenosis is an important cause of stroke in certain CABG patients. Randomized trials have revealed that carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is clearly indicated in non-CABG patients with symptomatic severe carotid stenosis. CEA is also indicated in patients with symptomatic moderate stenosis and asymptomatic severe stenosis if the predicted incidence of perioperative morbidity and mortality is low. Therapeutic options for patients with concomitant coronary and carotid disease include CABG alone, CABG plus CEA, and CABG plus carotid stenting. In this article we discuss each of these management techniques in detail, and make recommendations regarding the preferred approach in specific patient populations.     

Carotid stenosis: Endarterectomy or angioplasty and stenting?

Opinion statement Atherosclerotic narrowing of the proximal internal carotid artery is an important mechanism in ischemic stroke. Optimal medical management of internal carotid stenosis includes antiplatelet agent and statin administration, blood pressure reduction, weight control, and smoking cessation. Decisions regarding the use of invasive procedures to treat carotid disease—specifically carotid endarterectomy and carotid angioplasty and stenting—must weigh the long-term risk reduction in ipsilateral ischemic stroke against the immediate intervention risks. Clinical trials evaluating the benefits of carotid endarterectomy were conducted before widespread use of statins and newer blood pressure-lowering agents such as angiotensin-receptor blockers; it is unclear what impact this may have had on trial results. Regardless, carotid endarterectomy is clearly superior to medical therapy for patients with symptomatic severe stenosis. Conversely, the benefit from endarterectomy is muted in individuals with symptomatic moderate stenosis or asymptomatic stenosis, and decisions regarding surgical intervention must incorporate surgeon proficiency and patient comorbidity. Currently, there is a lack of evidence to support the use of carotid artery angioplasty and stenting in the routine management of carotid disease. Selected patients with severe symptomatic stenosis for whom endarterectomy cannot be safely performed may still benefit from endovascular management. However, it is unlikely that asymptomatic patients or symptomatic patients with moderate stenosis considered at high risk for endarterectomy would benefit from any intervention.     

Management of carotid restenosis

Carotid endarterectomy is the preferred method for cerebral revascularization in patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic high-grade extracranial carotid artery stenosis. Carotid artery stenting has recently emerged as a less invasive alternative to endarterectomy. Carotid stenting has been demonstrated to be technically feasible and safe in high-risk patients with current data indicating clinical equipoise with respect to endarterectomy. It is clear that carotid stenting will continue to be performed at increasing rates after these encouraging outcomes. Therefore, it is anticipated that there will be a corresponding increase in the number of in-stent restenosis cases. Considerable controversy exists regarding the clinical significance, natural history, threshold for management, and appropriate intervention of recurrent carotid stenosis after endarterectomy and after stenting. This review analyses current information on this important clinical problem and presents evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and management of recurrent carotid stenosis.     

Aktueller Status von ECST-2

Background

Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is a common procedure performed in patients who have suffered a stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA) to prevent a recurrent event. Clinical trials have provided evidence for the safety and efficacy of CEA in patients with recently symptomatic stenosis. Carotid artery stenting is an alternative to CEA. However, medical treatment has improved in the last 30 years and trials are ongoing to assess the use of modern medical treatment in selected patients with carotid disease as an alternative to revascularization.

Methods

We have reviewed the published results from clinical trials investigating the best treatment for symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis. In this review we discuss carotid endarterectomy, stenting and medical treatment. We have also included an update on the Second European Carotid Surgery Trial (ECST-2) which is an ongoing trial comparing revascularization to optimized medical therapy in patients with low to intermediate risk of recurrent stroke.

Results

The North American Symptomatic Carotid Endarterectomy Trial (NASCET) and the European Carotid Surgery Trial (ECST) both show that patients with high-risk symptomatic carotid stenosis benefit from CEA over medical treatment alone. However, it has been shown that surgery appeared to be harmful or at least not beneficial in patients included in the trials whose characteristics predicted a low risk of recurrent stroke. The Asymptomatic Carotid Surgery Trial (ACST) also showed a small benefit in treating asymptomatic patients with CEA over medical therapy. Several published trials have compared stenting with endarterectomy and although endarterectomy appears safer in the short term, both treatments have similar long-term outcomes; therefore stenting can be used as an alternative to CEA for selected patients.

Conclusion

CEA and stenting can both be offered to patients with recently symptomatic carotid stenosis to prevent recurrent stroke. We await the results of current trials investigating the role of modern medical therapy in selected patients with low to intermediate risk of recurrent stroke as an alternative to revascularization. The English full-text version of this article is available at SpringerLink (under “Supplemental”).     

Carotid endarterectomy: still the standard of care for carotid bifurcation disease

Current treatment guidelines of symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid stenosis are based on studies performed over a decade ago. Since that time, significant advances have been made in medical management, namely high dose statin therapy and improved antiplatelet agents, and in carotid interventions, namely the advent of carotid artery stenting. Especially with carotid stenting, the technology has grown by leaps and bounds and continues to advance at a rapid pace. These advances have necessitated new studies to compare these treatments with the gold standard of carotid endarterectomy. In asymptomatic patients, the current data does not justify medical management alone for severe (>80%) carotid stenosis. Furthermore, in both asymptomatic and symptomatic patients current studies have failed to demonstrate equivalence of CAS to CEA for significant carotid stenosis. Clearly additional studies comparing CAS, CEA, and medical management are needed to further clarify this issue. In the future, advances in CAS technology and techniques may greatly expand the role of CAS beyond its current role in certain high-risk patient subsets. However, for the time being CEA still remains the gold standard for carotid intervention.     

Evidence-based surgical treatment of carotid stenosis. Literature review

Carotid stenosis is an important cause of transient ischemic attacks and stroke. The cause of carotid stenosis is most often atherosclerosis, which accounts for 10% to 20% of brain infarction cases. Despite the introduction of tissue-plasminogen activator and other promising experimental therapies for select patients with acute ischemic stroke prevention remains the best approach to reduce its impact. Stroke-prone patients can be identified and targeted for specific interventions. At this juncture, treatment of carotid stenosis is a well-established therapeutic target and a pillar of stroke prevention. Two main strategies exist for the treatment of carotid stenosis. The 1st is stabilization or halting the progression of the carotid plaque formation with medications and modifications of risk factors (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, smoking, obesity, high cholesterol). The 2nd approach is the elimination or reduction of carotid stenosis by carotid endarterectomy or angioplasty and stenting. Carotid endarterectomy is the mainstay of therapy for symptomatic, severe carotid stenosis. Although its role for asymptomatic patients appears more limited, it is distinct for severe stenosis. Carotid angioplasty and stenting are techniques in maturation with the attractiveness of being less invasive that face the challenge of at least replicating the results of surgery. In this article, we will discuss the surgical management of symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid stenosis based on the evidence provided by the literature.     

In-stent recurrent stenosis after carotid artery stenting: life table analysis and clinical relevance

OBJECTIVES: Carotid artery stenting has been proposed as an alternative to carotid endarterectomy in cerebral revascularization. Although early results from several centers have been encouraging, concerns remain regarding long-term durability of carotid artery stenting. We report the incidence, characteristics, and management of in-stent recurrent stenosis after long-term follow-up of carotid artery stenting. METHODS: Carotid artery stenting (n = 122) was performed in 118 patients between September 1996 and March 2003. Indications included recurrent stenosis after previous carotid endarterectomy (66%), primary lesions in patients at high-risk (29%), and previous ipsilateral cervical radiation therapy (5%). Fifty-five percent of patients had asymptomatic stenosis; 45% had symptomatic lesions. Each patient was followed up with serial duplex ultrasound scanning. Selective angiography and repeat intervention were performed when duplex ultrasound scans demonstrated 80% or greater in-stent recurrent stenosis. Data were prospectively recorded, and were statistically analyzed with the Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test. RESULTS: Carotid artery stenting was performed successfully in all cases, with the WallStent or Acculink carotid stent. Thirty-day stroke and death rate was 3.3%, attributable to retinal infarction (n = 1), hemispheric stroke (n = 1), and death (n = 2). Over follow-up of 1 to 74 months (mean, 18.8 months), 22 patients had in-stent recurrent stenosis (40%-59%, n = 11; 60%-79%, n = 6; > or =80%, n = 5), which occurred within 18 months of carotid artery stenting in 13 patients (60%). None of the patients with in-stent recurrent stenosis exhibited neurologic symptoms. Life table analysis and Kaplan-Meier curves predicted cumulative in-stent recurrent stenosis 80% or greater in 6.4% of patients at 60 months. Three of five in-stent recurrent stenoses occurred within 15 months of carotid artery stenting, and one each occurred at 20 and 47 months, respectively. Repeat angioplasty was performed once in 3 patients and three times in 1 patient, and repeat stenting in 1 patient, without complications. One of these patients demonstrated asymptomatic internal carotid artery occlusion 1 year after repeat intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Carotid artery stenting can be performed with a low incidence of periprocedural complications. The cumulative incidence of clinically significant in-stent recurrent stenosis (> or =80%) over 5 years is low (6.4%). In-stent restenosis was not associated with neurologic symptoms in the 5 patients noted in this cohort. Most instances of in-stent recurrent stenosis occur early after carotid artery stenting, and can be managed successfully with endovascular techniques.     

Carotid surgery following previous carotid endarterectomy is safe and effective

With the perceived high risk of repeat carotid surgery, carotid angioplasty and stenting have been advocated recently as the preferred treatment of recurrent carotid disease following carotid endarterectomy. An experience with the operative treatment of recurrent carotid disease to document the risks and benefits of this procedure is presented. A review of a prospectively acquired vascular registry over a 10-year period (Jan. 1990-Jan. 2000) was undertaken to identify patients undergoing repeat carotid surgery following previous carotid endarterectomy. All patients were treated with repeat carotid endarterectomy, carotid interposition graft, or subclavian-carotid bypass. The perioperative stroke and death rate, operative complications, life-table freedom from stroke, and rates of recurrent stenosis were documented. During the study period 56 patients underwent repeat carotid surgery, comprising 6% of all carotid operations during this period. The indication for operation was symptomatic disease recurrence in 41 cases (73%) and asymptomatic recurrent stenosis >/=80% in 15 cases (27%). The average interval from the prior carotid endarterectomy to the repeat operation was 78 months (range 3 weeks-297 months). The operations performed included repeat carotid endarterectomy with patch angioplasty in 31 cases (55%), interposition grafts in 19 cases (34%), and subclavian-carotid bypass in 6 cases (11%). There were three perioperative strokes with one resulting in death for a perioperative stroke and death rate of 5.4%. One minor transient cranial nerve (CN IX) injury occurred. Mean follow-up was 29 months (range, 1-116 months). Life-table freedom from stroke was 95% at 1 year and 90% at 5 years. Recurrent stenosis (>/=80%) developed in three patients (5.4%) during follow-up, including one internal carotid artery occlusion. Two patients (3.6%) underwent repeat surgery. Repeat surgery for recurrent cerebrovascular disease following carotid endarterectomy is safe and provides durable freedom from stroke. Most patients are candidates for repeat endarterectomy with patching, but interposition grafting is often required. These results strongly support the continued role of repeat carotid surgery in the treatment of recurrent carotid disease.     

Karotisstenose

Since 2004, several large randomized trials have provided important data about the comparison of carotid endarterectomy and carotid artery stenting of more than 2000 patients with predominantly symptomatic carotid artery stenosis. None of these trials demonstrated clearly an equivalent periprocedural risk of both techniques. Long-term evaluation is also pending. Thus carotid endarterectomy remains the gold standard in treatment of symptomatic carotid artery stenosis. The frequently performed endovascular treatment of asymptomatic carotid stenosis is not supported by study data.     

Carotid artery stenosis]

Since 2004, several large randomized trials have provided important data about the comparison of carotid endarterectomy and carotid artery stenting of more than 2,000 patients with predominantly symptomatic carotid artery stenosis. None of these trials demonstrated clearly an equivalent periprocedural risk of both techniques. Long-term evaluation is also pending. Thus carotid endarterectomy remains the gold standard in treatment of symptomatic carotid artery stenosis. The frequently performed endovascular treatment of asymptomatic carotid stenosis is not supported by study data.     

Recurrent carotid stenosis after CEA and CAS: diagnosis and management

Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is the preferred method for cerebral revascularization in patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic high-grade extracranial carotid artery stenosis. Carotid artery stenting (CAS) has recently emerged as a less invasive alternative to endarterectomy. Carotid stenting has been demonstrated to be technically feasible and safe in high-risk patients. It has been approved as an acceptable method for revascularization in circumstances where CEA yields suboptimal results. While the final role of CAS in carotid revascularization will be determined on the basis of ongoing randomized trials, it is clear that stenting will continue to be performed in subgroups of patients with carotid stenosis. Therefore, it is anticipated that there will be a corresponding increase in the number of in-stent restenosis cases. Considerable controversy exists regarding the clinical significance, natural history, threshold for management, and appropriate intervention of recurrent carotid stenosis after endarterectomy and after stenting. This review analyzes current information on this important clinical problem and presents evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and management of recurrent carotid stenosis.     

Indikationen zur Therapie von Stenosen der A. carotis

The annual stroke risk for patients with asymptomatic stenoses of the carotid artery is around 1% in case of <70% stenosis (NASCET criteria) and 2-5% in patients with >70% stenosis. The risk of recurrent ischemic events for patients with symptomatic stenoses is much higher, around 15% during the first year. For more than 10 years, the efficacy of carotid surgery has been proven, and there is growing evidence to support surgery in case of asymptomatic stenosis. Patients with severe stenoses, male or elderly patients, and those with bilateral stenoses benefit more from surgery. Carotid artery stenting has not proven its safety or efficacy. Despite this lack of evidence, the method is used in many centers as an alternative to surgery. Especially symptomatic carotid artery stenosis should be used mainly in the setting of a randomized trial such as SPACE.     

Evidence for Management of Carotid Artery Stenosis

In this review, we presented the evidence concerning carotid artery stenosis treatment in symptomatic stenosis and asymptomatic stenosis separately, and discussed the future challenges. The validity of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) to treat moderate or greater degree of symptomatic carotid artery stenosis appears to be established. Due to the additional option of carotid artery stenting (CAS), it is necessary to comprehensively determine whether CEA or CAS is more appropriate for each individual patient. Moreover, since there are rapid advancements in devices for CAS and improvements in treatment outcomes, continual learning of the latest treatment method is essential. For asymptomatic stenosis, due to improvements in the outcomes with best medical treatment (BMT), it is essential to re-evaluate the use of invasive CEA/CAS. Continual verification of the latest randomized clinical trial that compares CEA, CAS, and BMT, and establishment of a diagnostic method that can accurately extract the group of patients who have the highest future risk of developing ischemia, are desired.     

Optimal contemporary management of symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis

This commentary addresses the issue of optimal contemporary management of symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis. Based on current data, carotid endarterectomy (CEA) should be performed in the majority of patients with symptomatic carotid artery stenosis. Carotid artery stenting (CAS) should be reserved for a minority of these symptomatic patients, in whom CEA is contraindicated. In asymptomatic patients, all should be placed on best medical treatment (BMT). With the use of one or more of the proposed stroke risk stratification models or some as yet undetermined method, the identification of those asymptomatic individuals may be possible in whom stroke risk is higher than usual with BMT. This asymptomatic subgroup, which may be small and is yet to be determined with certainty, could be offered an invasive carotid procedure (either CAS or CEA).     

Carotid artery stenting: to be or not to be?

Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) has been the standard of care for suitable patients with symptomatic or asymptomatic high grade carotid stenosis since the landmark NASCET (North American Symptomatic Carotid Endarterectomy Trial), ECST (European Carotid Surgery Trial) and ACAS (Asymptomatic Carotid Artery Surgery) studies performed in the 1990s and more recently the ACST (Asymptomatic Carotid Surgery Trial). Carotid artery stenting (CAS) in the treatment of both symptomatic and asymptomatic patients with high grade carotid stenosis has recently been investigated as an alternative to CEA. We present a review of the most recent CAS trials and examine some of the controversies that surround them.     

Endovascular therapy of carotid artery stenosis: a prospective case study

Carotid artery stenting was carried out in a prospective consecutive case study. All interventions were done by the same investigator (PH), and one type of stenting device was used. Additionally, periprocedural monitoring was carried out for at least 24 h. 190 patients were included (70±8.9 years). All had a high grade stenosis (>70% according to North American Symptomatic Carotid Endarterectomy Trial (NASCET) criteria). 140 were men and 50 were women. 104 (55%) had symptomatic stenosis and 86 (45%) had asymptomatic stenosis. A self-expanding nitinol-carotis stent was used (Cordis Precise stent; Johnson and Johnson) with an emboli capture guidewire basket system (Angioguard; Cordis). 30 day complications (infarct, hemorrhage, death due to either) were seen in 13 cases (6.8%). Disabling complications with an increase in the modified Rankin Scale by >2 points after 6 months were seen in five cases (2.6%). The rate of complications after carotid artery stenting was comparable with that after carotid endarterectomy (from the literature). No correlation was seen between complications and age, gender, diabetes, hypertension, symptomatic stenosis or plaque morphology. This may be because of the the 24 h post-procedural monitoring.     

Updated Society for Vascular Surgery guidelines for management of extracranial carotid disease: executive summary

In 2008, the Society for Vascular Surgery published guidelines for the treatment of carotid bifurcation stenosis. Since that time, a number of prospective randomized trials have been completed and have shed additional light on the best treatment of extracranial carotid disease. This has prompted the Society for Vascular Surgery to form a committee to update and expand guidelines in this area. The review was done using the GRADE methodology.[corrected] The perioperative risk of stroke and death in asymptomatic patients must be below 3% to ensure benefit for the patient. Carotid artery stenting (CAS) should be reserved for symptomatic patients with stenosis 50% to 99% at high risk for CEA for anatomic or medical reasons. CAS is not recommended for asymptomatic patients at this time. Asymptomatic patients at high risk for intervention or with <3 years life expectancy should be considered for medical management as first line therapy. In this Executive Summary, we only outline the specifics of the recommendations made in the six areas evaluated. The full text of these guidelines can be found on the on-line version of the Journal of Vascular Surgery at http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/ymva.     

Choosing the appropriate intervention for symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid disease in the era of multiple therapies: integration of risk profile and technical data

With rapid evolution of endovascular techniques, carotid artery stenting has emerged as an alternative to carotid endarterectomy. Several investigations have been performed that examine the roles of carotid endarterectomy and carotid artery stenting and some trials have sought to compare the two treatment modalities. There have also been advances in the understanding of optimal medical management of carotid artery stenosis. The obvious question that arises is what is the most appropriate treatment option for patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis? The answer is not straightforward and requires an understanding of differential outcomes in select subgroups. A review of the major studies, including some of the most recent trials, will help to elucidate the optimal therapy.     

Current management of extracranial carotid artery disease

Stroke is the third most common cause of death in the United States. There are approximately 700,000 strokes/year; 80% are ischemic, and 20-30% of ischemic strokes are secondary to carotid disease. Carotid stenosis is traditionally treated by carotid endarterectomy (CEA). Multicenter, randomized, controlled trials have shown that surgery significantly reduces the risk of ipsilateral stroke in patients with severe symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid stenosis. Endovascular techniques for treating carotid stenosis have been developed over recent years. Carotid angioplasty and stenting (CAS) with cerebral protection has become an alternative to CEA for high-surgical-risk patients and the procedure of choice for stenoses inaccessible by surgery. In this review we summarize the existing data regarding the traditional state of management of extracranial carotid artery stenosis and compare these data to a critical analysis of the recent results of CAS.     

Combined carotid endarterectomy and coronary artery bypass grafting in patients with asymptomatic high-grade stenoses: an analysis of 758 procedures

PURPOSE: Surgical treatment of hemodynamically significant carotid artery stenoses has been well documented, especially in the asymptomatic patient. However, in those patients presenting with hemodynamically significant asymptomatic carotid artery disease who are to undergo cardiac surgery, optimal treatment remains controversial. In this study, we analyze our experience with patients who underwent synchronous carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and coronary artery bypass graft procedures (CABG) for hemodynamically significant (>70%) asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis and coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS: Demographics and outcomes of all patients undergoing synchronous CEA/CABG for asymptomatic carotid stenosis between April 1980 and January 2005 were reviewed from our vascular registry and patient charts. We included patients who underwent standard patching of their carotid artery and those undergoing eversion CEA. All neurologic events within the first 30 days that persisted >24 hours were considered a stroke. For purposes of comparison, we also reviewed outcomes for patients undergoing synchronous CEA/CABG for symptomatic carotid stenosis. RESULTS: Asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis (>70%) was the indication in 702 patients (276 women and 426 men) undergoing 758 CEAs. In the asymptomatic group, 22 patients, of which 21 succumbed to cardiac dysfunction, and one died from a hemorrhagic stroke. The overall mortality rate was 3.1%. Seven permanent nonfatal neurologic deficits occurred in this series (1 woman, 6 men). The combined stroke mortality was 4.3%. This compares to a 30-day stroke mortality of 6.1% in 132 symptomatic combined CEA/CABG patients. The difference in stroke mortality in women compared with men was not significant. CONCLUSION: In this experience, patients presenting with hemodynamically significant (>70%) asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis can undergo synchronous CEA/CABG with low morbidity and mortality.