Endovascular or surgical treatment of the carotid arteries

Ischemic stroke is the third most common cause of death right after myocardial infarction and malignancies. Most cases of stroke are due to extracranial carotid atherosclerotic disease. The percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and stenting of the carotid arteries have emerged as an alternative to the standart carotid endarterectomy mainly because they are less invasive procedures. Carotid stenting with or without the use of neuroprotection devices proves to be effective in high-risk patients with carotid stenosis. Nevertheless, there is no clear proof that endovascular techniques outmatch the classic surgical methods.     

Urgent stenting for patients with acute stroke due to atherosclerotic occlusive lesions of the cervical internal carotid artery

Acute symptomatic occlusion of the cervical internal carotid artery (ICA) can be treated by intravenous administration of tissue plasminogen activator, percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, and carotid endarterectomy. Carotid artery stenting (CAS) is now indicated for cervical ICA stenosis, but the safety and the efficacy of urgent CAS have not been established. We retrospectively reviewed 10 patients treated by urgent CAS for atherosclerotic occlusive lesions of cervical ICA with acute stroke. Five patients had complete occlusions and five had near total occlusions. Five of the 10 patients had intracranial tandem occlusions. Indication for urgent CAS was determined by mismatch of diffusion-weighted and perfusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging findings. Stents were successfully deployed in all lesions. Three of five patients with concomitant intracranial tandem occlusions were treated by additional intraarterial fibrinolysis after the CAS. Intracranial artery occlusions were completely recanalized in one patient, and partially recanalized in two by fibrinolysis. Hyperperfusion syndrome did not occur in any of the patients. A favorable outcome (modified Rankin Scale < or =1) was obtained in all of the five patients with isolated cervical ICA occlusion and one of the five patients with intracranial tandem occlusions. Urgent CAS is a safe and effective treatment in patients with isolated cervical ICA occlusion. Treatment of intracranial tandem occlusions is an issue that must be resolved.     

PTA and stenting after previous aortoiliac endarterectomy.

OBJECTIVES: to evaluate the feasibility and long-term results of angioplasty and stenting in the treatment of restenosis following aortoiliac endarterectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: between 1991 and 1999 19 patients underwent angioplasty with selective stenting for recurrent stenosis after previous aortoiliac endarterectomy. Aortic lesions were treated five times in four patients. At the iliac level 28 lesions (25 stenosis and three occlusions) were treated in 16 patients (one patient had a stenosis at the aortic as well as iliac level). All patients were followed clinically and by ultrasound. In the second half of 1999, an angiogram or spiral CT-angiography was performed in all patients to determine long-term outcome. RESULTS: technical success was obtained in all patients and clinical success was achieved in 18 of the 19 patients. Angiographic cumulative primary patency for aortoiliac lesions was 96% at 1 year and 76% at 3 years. CONCLUSIONS: angioplasty with selective stenting of recurrent aortoiliac disease after previous aortoiliac endarterectomy is feasible and safe. Long-term clinical and angiographic patency rates are in accordance with results of aortoiliac angioplasty in general.     

Angioplasty and primary stenting of the subclavian, innominate, and common carotid arteries in 83 patients

Purpose: The initial and long-term results of angioplasty and primary stenting for the treatment of occlusive lesions involving the supra-aortic trunks were studied. Methods: All patients in whom angioplasty and stenting of the supra-aortic trunks was attempted were included in a prospective registry. Results are, therefore, reported on an intent-to-treat basis. The preprocedural and postprocedural clinical records, arteriograms, and noninvasive vascular laboratory examinations of 83 patients (41 men [49.4%] and 42 women [50.6%]; mean age at intervention, 63 years) in whom endovascular repair of the subclavian (66, 75.9%), left common carotid (14, 16.1%), and innominate (7, 8.0%) arteries was attempted were retrospectively reviewed. Results: Initial technical success was achieved in 82 of 87 procedures (94.3%). The inability to cross 4 complete subclavian occlusions and the iatrogenic dissection of 1 common carotid artery lesion accounted for the 5 initial failures. Complications occurred in 17.8% of 73 subclavian and innominate procedures, including access-site bleeding in 6 and distal embolization in 2. Ischemic strokes occurred in 2 of 14 common carotid interventions (14.3%), both of which were performed in conjunction with ipsilateral carotid bifurcation endarterectomy. The 30-day mortality rate was 4.8% for the entire group. By means of life-table analysis, 84% of the subclavian and innominate interventions, including initial failures, remain patent by objective means at 35 months. No patients have required reintervention or surgical conversion for recurrence of symptoms. Of the 11 patients available for follow-up study who underwent common carotid interventions, 10 remain stroke-free at a mean of 14.3 months. Conclusion: Angioplasty and primary stenting of the subclavian and innominate arteries can be performed with relative safety and expectations of satisfactory midterm success. Endovascular repair of common carotid artery lesions can be performed with a high degree of technical success, but should be approached with caution when performed in conjunction with ipsilateral bifurcation endarterectomy. (J Vasc Surg 1998;28:1059-65.)     

Simultaneous carotid-vertebral reconstruction

Vertebral atherosclerotic lesions frequently coexist with lesions in the carotid arteries. The most common cause of vertebrobasilar symptoms is hypoperfusion which may be relieved by correction of a critical carotid stenosis. A safe record with direct vertebral revascularization has led us to do simultaneous correction of lesions in the carotid and vertebral arteries through a single cervical incision. To evaluate combined carotid and vertebral reconstruction, procedures performed in a five-year period (1982 to 1987) were retrospectively studied. Thirty-six patients had combined carotid-vertebral reconstruction. In 10 patients, the primary indication was critical carotid disease; 26 patients had vertebrobasilar symptoms. The procedures performed were carotid endarterectomy with either vertebral reimplantation (22) or distal vertebral bypass (7), or external carotid angioplasty with either vertebral reimplantation (3) or distal vertebral bypass (4). Combined carotid-vertebral procedures are effective in relieving symptoms of hypoperfusion in the vertebrobasilar system. A specific lesson learned is that a distal vertebral bypass must not be done in conjunction with an external carotid angioplasty.     

Combined carotid endarterectomy with transluminal angioplasty and primary stenting of the supra-aortic vessels

BACKGROUND: Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is the standard of care for patients with high-grade carotid artery stenosis who are acceptable surgical candidates. Focal occlusive lesions of the origin of aortic arch vessels can be effectively and safely treated with balloon angioplasty and primary stenting. The purpose of this study was to retrospectively review results of carotid endarterectomy for high-grade carotid bifurcation stenosis combined with intraoperative retrograde transluminal angioplasty and primary stenting of a hemodynamically significant stenosis at the origin of a proximal ipsilateral aortic arch vessel. METHODS: Between October 1994 and August 1998, 592 patients underwent CEA. Six patients were found to have hemodynamically significant tandem lesions affecting one of the aortic arch vessels and the ipsilateral ICA for an overall incidence of 1%. Age ranged from 63 to 78 years (mean 74.7). Four of 6 (67%) patients had asymptomatic lesions, and 2 of 6 (33%) had symptoms of cerebral ischemia. Five patients had tandem lesions affecting the proximal left common carotid artery and the left ICA. One patient had a tandem lesion affecting the innominate artery and the right ICA. Carotid duplex imaging and arch and cerebral arteriography was performed in all six patients. Arteriography confirmed high-grade stenoses in both the ICA and ipsilateral proximal aortic arch vessel. The range of stenoses in the ICA was 70 to 95% (mean 80.8%) measured arteriographically. The range of stenoses at the origin of the aortic arch vessels was 75-90% (mean 79.2%). All six patients underwent combined retrograde transluminal balloon angioplasty and primary stenting of the ipsilateral CCA or innominate artery with temporary occlusion of the ICA for cerebral protection. The endovascular procedure was then followed with standard surgical endarterectomy using an inline shunt. RESULTS: All six procedures were successfully completed. There were no periprocedural strokes or other morbidities. Follow-up ranged from 6 to 43 months (mean 23.6) and showed no evidence of recurrent stenosis by carotid duplex imaging. No TIAs or strokes related to the surgically corrected lesions were noted during the follow-up period. One patient suffered a right hemispheric stroke secondary to a high-grade right carotid stenosis which occurred two months after her procedure surgically correcting tandem lesions on the opposite side. CONCLUSIONS: Carotid endarterectomy with balloon angioplasty and primary stenting of an ipsilateral hemodynamically significant aortic arch trunk vessel stenosis can be safely and successfully accomplished and avoids the need for an intra/extrathoracic bypass procedure.     

Assembly of a multichannel video system to simultaneously record cerebral emboli with cerebral imaging

Stroke remains a significant risk of carotid revascularization for atherosclerotic disease. Emboli generated at the time of treatment either using endarterectomy or stent-angioplasty may progress with blood flow and lodge in brain arteries. Recently, the use of protection devices to trap emboli created at the time of revascularization has helped to establish a role for stent-supported angioplasty compared with endarterectomy. Several devices have been developed to reduce or detect emboli that may be dislodged during carotid artery stenting to treat carotid artery stenosis. A significant challenge in assessing the efficacy of these devices is precisely determining when emboli are dislodged in real time. To address this challenge, we devised a method of simultaneously recording fluoroscopic images, transcranial Doppler data, vital signs, and digital video of the patient/physician. This method permits accurate causative analysis and allows procedural events to be precisely correlated to embolic events in real time.     

Percutaneous Interventions for Treatment of Iliac Artery Stenoses and Occlusions

Balloon angioplasty is still the main workhorse for percutaneous interventions in the iliac arteries. It is simple to perform, cost-effective, and remarkably safe. If an adequate hemodynamic result has been achieved, patency is acceptable. To monitor the quality of success, intraarterial pressure monitoring is an important tool. Balloon angioplasty may be followed by stent insertion in case of insufficient luminal gain after inadequate balloon angioplasty or occurrence of significant dissection. Percutaneous treatment of chronic iliac occlusions is technically challenging. For chronic occlusions (duration exceeding 3 months), balloon angioplasty alone, thrombolysis with subsequent balloon angioplasty, and elective stenting or mechanical passage of the occlusion followed by primary stent implantation have been described as alternative techniques. In case of in-stent stenosis, directional atherectomy or balloon dilatation is recommended. Stent grafts allow percutaneous exclusion of isolated iliac aneurysms, iatrogenic perforation, rupture, and arteriovenous fistulas, but these cases are rare. Some authors increasingly favor the use of endoluminal graft systems for treating atherosclerotic disease in iliac arteries, but insufficient data are available to prove the benefit of stent grafts in patients with atherosclerotic disease.     

Past,Present and Future of Surgical Training in Belgium

The objective of the authors is to assess the natural history of carotid artery disease and the role of carotid intervention in preventing ipsilateral stroke. The development of endovascular techniques for correction of carotid artery stenoses made this less invasive technique very popular, with an inherent risk of unregulated overuse by a variety of medical specialists, who are not always well informed on the natural history of carotid artery disease. It re-opened the discussion on the value of carotid endarterectomy for stroke prophylaxis. This ongoing debate offers the opportunity to distil evidence-based guidelines for the management of extracranial carotid artery stenoses.

In recent papers, some authors expressed doubts on the validity and general applicability of the results of the pivotal randomised trials of carotid endarterectomy. The excellent results in terms of operative outcome and long term stroke prevention would, according to certain comments, not be attainable in routine practice.

Another criticism of carotid endarterectomy is its higher operative morbidity in terms of cranial nerve lesions and myocardial infarctions, compared to endovascular procedures. This consideration is, for some authors, the main reason to espouse carotid artery stenting as a better alternative to carotid endarterectomy. Any evidence supporting this point of view is missing. The supposed equivalence or non-inferiority of carotid artery stenting is purely speculative. The aim of this review paper is to summarize the crude data of carotid surgery trials. The authors aim to answer four questions. For which lesions is carotid endarterectomy most beneficial ? Are the results of randomised carotid surgery trials biased by the selection of patients ? Is operative morbidity, other than stroke, under-estimated ? Is carotid artery stenting safe and efficacious ?

An in-depth review with a critical analysis is made of recently published and on-going trials, comparing carotid surgery with percutaneous carotid angioplasty.     

Treatment of tandem lesions of the extracranial carotid artery

The authors present a patient with bihemispheric transient ischemic attacks attributed to stenosis of the left common carotid origin and stenosis and ulceration of the left cervical internal carotid artery. Because of precarious cerebral blood supply secondary to occlusions of the right common carotid and left vertebral arteries, several measures were undertaken perioperatively to provide protection from cerebral ischemia during vessel occlusion. These included Swan-Ganz catheter monitoring to maximize cardiac output and maintain satisfactory hydration, normocarbia, satisfactory oxygenation, and moderate hypertension and barbiturate infusion. With these adjuncts, both lesions were treated together. Retrograde balloon angioplasty under fluoroscopic control of a significant stenosis of the common carotid artery origin was performed before carotid endarterectomy. Postoperative digital subtraction angiography demonstrated a satisfactory technical result. The management of tandem lesions of the extracranial carotid artery is discussed. Balloon angioplasty coupled with extracranial vascular reconstructive procedures may allow the management of lesions not treated safely or effectively by either technique alone.     

Hybrid treatment of common carotid artery occlusion with ring-stripper endarterectomy plus stenting

Symptomatic occlusion of the common carotid artery with preserved circulation in the internal carotid artery is an uncommon occurrence. We describe a hybrid technique whereby a patient was treated with eversion carotid bifurcation endarterectomy, fluoroscopically guided retrograde ring-stripper common carotid endarterectomy, and stenting of residual stenosis in the disobliterated artery. Successful recanalization was achieved without adverse anatomic or neurologic sequelae. The patient remains asymptomatic with a radiographically patent reconstruction at 1 year. This combination of endovascular and open surgery enables the surgeon to address long occlusions of the common carotid arteries with control of the distal and proximal endarterectomy margins and obviates the need for general anesthesia or sternotomy.     

Thromboendarterectomy and angioplasty of the carotid bifurcation. Technical notes

Exceptional surgical reports of widespread atherosclerotic involvement of both internal and external carotid arteries required us to carry out an unusual surgical procedure. During a four years period an original carotid endarterectomy's technique was performed in four patients. We point on the importance of a correct external carotid endarterectomy on maintaining an effective intracranial arterial flow, especially when atherosclerotic lesions are contemporary present in the extra and intracranial internal carotid arteries.     

Lessons learnt from carotid artery trials

The objective of the authors is to assess the natural history of carotid artery disease and the role of carotid intervention in preventing ipsilateral stroke. The development of endovascular techniques for correction of carotid artery stenoses made this less invasive technique very popular, with an inherent risk of unregulated overuse by a variety of medical specialists, who are not always well informed on the natural history of carotid artery disease. It re-opened the discussion on the value of carotid endarterectomy for stroke prophylaxis. This ongoing debate offers the opportunity to distil evidence-based guidelines for the management of extracranial carotid artery stenoses. In recent papers, some authors expressed doubts on the validity and general applicability of the results of the pivotal randomised trials of carotid endarterectomy. The excellent results in terms of operative outcome and long term stroke prevention would, according to certain comments, not be attainable in routine practice. Another criticism of carotid endarterectomy is its higher operative morbidity in terms of cranial nerve lesions and myocardial infarctions, compared to endovascular procedures. This consideration is, for some authors, the main reason to espouse carotid artery stenting as a better alternative to carotid endarterectomy. Any evidence supporting this point of view is missing. The supposed equivalence or non-inferiority of carotid artery stenting is purely speculative. The aim of this review paper is to summarize the crude data of carotid surgery trials. The authors aim to answer four questions. For which lesions is carotid endarterectomy most beneficial ? Are the results of randomised carotid surgery trials biased by the selection of patients ? Is operative morbidity, other than stroke, under-estimated ? Is carotid artery stenting safe and efficacious ? An in-depth review with a critical analysis is made of recently published and on-going trials, comparing carotid surgery with percutaneous carotid angioplasty.     

Cerebral hyperperfusion syndrome after percutaneous transluminal stenting of the craniocervical arteries

OBJECTIVE: Cerebral hyperperfusion syndrome is a recognized complication of carotid endarterectomy, with a reported incidence of 0.3 to 1.2%. The incidence of cerebral hyperperfusion after endovascular revascularization procedures of the craniocervical arteries remains unknown. We evaluated the incidence of cerebral hyperperfusion syndrome in our endovascular revascularization series. To our knowledge, there are no previous studies evaluating the incidence of hyperperfusion syndrome after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty/stenting. METHODS: Between March 1996 and February 2000, 140 patients underwent percutaneous transluminal angioplasty/stenting of the craniocervical arteries at our institution. In all patients, selective bilateral arteriography of the carotid and vertebral arteries was performed to document the sites of craniocervical stenosis and collateral blood flow and the results of the endovascular revascularization procedure. We then reviewed all pertinent medical records, arteriographic films, and sectional imaging studies to determine the incidence of cerebral hyperperfusion in this series. RESULTS: Seven patients (5.0%) developed clinical or radiological manifestations of cerebral hyperperfusion. In the target group, percutaneous transluminal stenting achieved a 90 to 100% reduction in stenotic lesions (mean stenosis, 91%) of the carotid (n = 5) and vertebral (n = 2) arteries. All seven patients remained neurologically stable immediately after treatment. There was delayed development of clinical and radiographic findings, suggestive of cerebral hyperperfusion. Six patients showed evidence of ipsilateral hemispheric edema, including two patients who developed intracranial hemorrhage (one parenchymal, one parenchymal and subarachnoid) documented by computed tomographic brain scans. Symptoms resolved within 72 hours in the four patients without hemorrhage. The two patients with hemorrhage recovered during a more protracted period (range, 3 wk to 6 mo). There were no long-term sequelae or deaths during a cumulative follow-up of 84 months (mean follow-up, 12 mo). CONCLUSION: Hyperperfusion syndrome is an uncommon but potentially serious complication of extracranial and intracranial angioplasty and stenting procedures. The clinical manifestations are similar to hyperperfusion syndrome after carotid endarterectomy; however, the prevalence may be greater in the high-risk cohort commonly referred for endovascular treatment. Our findings suggest that patients undergoing endovascular stenting procedures should be closely monitored for evidence of hyperperfusion, with careful monitoring of blood pressure, heart rate, and anticoagulation. Further research is needed to confirm that cerebral hyperperfusion is the pathogenesis of this condition.     

Microemboli detected by transcranial Doppler monitoring in patients during carotid angioplasty versus carotid endarterectomy

Microemboli, as detected by transcranial Doppler monitoring, have been shown to be a potential cause of strokes after carotid endarterectomy. We retrospectively reviewed 105 patients who underwent transcranial Doppler monitoring during 112 procedures for the treatment of 115 carotid bifurcation stenoses: 40 by percutaneous angioplasty with stenting and 75 by carotid endarterectomy. In PTAS procedures (n = 40), there was a mean of 74.0 emboli per stenosis (range 0-398, P = 0.0001) with 4 neurologic events per patient (P = 0.08). In CEA procedures (n = 76), there was a mean of 8.8. emboli per stenosis (range 0-102, P= 0.0001) with 1 neurologic event per patient (P = 0.08). The post-procedural neurological events in the percutaneous angioplasty with stenting population included two strokes (5.6%) and two transient ischemia attacks (5.6%). Microemboli for each of these cases totalled 133, 17, 29 and 47 (with one shower), respectively. One postoperative carotid endarterectomy patient was noted to have a stroke (1.4%), with 48 microemboli noted during that procedure. The mean emboli rate for percutaneous angioplasty with stenting patients with neurological events was 59.0: without complications it was 85.1. The mean emboli rate for carotid endarterectomy patients without complications was 8.3. Three percutaneous angioplasty with stenting patients had no emboli (7.5%), whereas 29 carotid endarterectomy patients had no emboli (38.7%). CONCLUSION: The percutaneous angioplasty with stenting procedure is associated with more than eight times the rate of microemboli seen during carotid endarterectomy when evaluated with transcranial Doppler monitoring. Larger patient groups are needed to determine if this greater embolization rate has an associated risk of higher morbidity or mortality.     

Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and stent placement for recurrent carotid artery stenosis

OBJECT: Treatment consisting of percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) and stent placement has recently been proposed as an alternative to surgical reexploration in patients with recurrent carotid artery stenosis following endarterectomy. The authors retrospectively reviewed their experience after performing 25 procedures in 21 patients to assess the safety and efficacy of PTA with or without stent placement for carotid artery restenosis. METHODS: The mean interval between endarterectomy and the endovascular procedures was 57 months (range 8-220 months). Seven arteries in five patients were treated by PTA alone (including bilateral procedures in one patient and repeated angioplasty in the same vessel in another). Early suboptimum results and recurrent stenosis in some of these initial cases prompted the authors to combine PTA with stent placement in the treatment of 18 arteries over the past 3 years. No major periprocedural deficits (neurological or cardiac complications) or death occurred. There was one periprocedural transient neurological event, and in one patient a pseudoaneurysm of the femoral artery (at the access site) required surgical repair. In the 16 patients who each underwent at least 6 months of follow-up review, no neurological events ipsilateral to the treated artery had occurred after a mean follow-up period of 27 months (range 6-57 months). Three of five patients who underwent PTA alone developed significant (>50%) asymptomatic restenoses that required repeated angioplasty in one and PTA with stent placement in two patients. Significant restenosis (55%) was observed in only one of the vessels treated by combined angioplasty and stent placement. CONCLUSIONS: Endovascular PTA and stenting of recurrent carotid artery stenosis is both technically feasible and safe and has a satisfactory midterm patency. This procedure can be considered a viable alternative to surgical reexploration in patients with recurrent carotid artery stenosis.     

Open endarterectomy of the SPT segment: an experience

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the results of open endarterectomy in short atherosclerotic occlusions of the SPT segment (superficial femoral, popliteal, and tibioperoneal arteries). Retrospectively, records from July 1999 to June 2004 of patients who underwent open endarterectomy of lower limb arteries were verified; 63 patients with 66 lesions had open endarterectomy of the SPT segment as a primary procedure. At the time of this study, there were 57 patients alive and six dead, with the cause of death being unrelated to the procedure. The patients had a mean age of 71 +/- 10.73 years, and there were 18 females and 45 males. All patients underwent routine follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months and yearly thereafter. Routine clinical examination and ultrasound were done to assess the outcome. The mean length of endarterectomized superficial femoral artery was 7.42 +/- 3.66 cm (range 2-15). The lesions involved were the superficial femoral, popliteal, and tibioperoneal arteries (SPT segment). The primary cumulative patency rate by means of life-table analysis was 48.8% at 5 years (mean 12.7 months, range 1-60). During follow-up, percutaneous transluminal angioplasty was necessary in nine patients, for a primary assisted patency rate of 85.1% at 5 years. The location of recurrent stenoses after endarterectomy was usually at one of the ends of the endarterectomy site. Once a preferred technique, endarterectomy is now overshadowed by bypass procedures. Our clinical experience suggests that, in a select group of patients with SPT segment occlusions, open endarterectomy is technically feasible and should be used in cases with insufficient vein for bypass grafting. It also can be used as an alternative to allow the long saphenous vein to be reserved for a bypass procedure in the future.     

Surgeries on the carotid arteries

The article lays emphasis on the main causes of restenosis after endarterectomy from the bifurcation of the carotid artery and shows the methods of its prevention. A new method for endarterectomy of the bifurcation of the carotid artery is suggested, which consists in reimplantation of the internal carotid artery. The authors claim this method to be optimal in combined affection: atherosclerotic constriction of carotid artery bifurcation and pathological tortuosity of the internal carotid artery. The authors possess an experience in 351 operations on the carotid arteries, 177 of them were conducted for loops and kinks of the carotid arteries; 152, for endarterectomy in atherosclerotic affection of the carotid arteries; and 22 for other, less frequently encountered affections of the carotid arteries.     

Indications and results with cryoplasty in the treatment of infrainguinal arterial occlusive disease

Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty of the superficial femoral and popliteal arteries has been an accepted therapy for short focal stenosis. Elastic recoil and flow-limiting dissection have limited the durability of angioplasty, especially in long lesions and total occlusions. Cryoplasty couples cold therapy with angioplasty to induce mechanical and biologic effects to reduce elastic recoil and potentially to reduce restenosis. The mechanical and biologic mechanisms of this therapy are discussed. The results of cryoplasty for femoropopliteal lesions from a single-center series and a multicenter registry are reviewed. Cryoplasty appears to improve patency over conventional angioplasty and to reduce the need for bailout stenting in femoropopliteal stenoses and occlusions < 10 cm in length. Cryoplasty appears to be promising to treat critical limb ischemia in patients with tibial disease.     

Carotid endarterectomy in patients with contralateral carotid occlusion

Total occlusion of the contralateral internal carotid artery has often been considered to be a predictor of adverse neurologic outcomes following carotid endarterectomy of an ipsilateral carotid stenosis. Results from both the North American Symptomatic Carotid Endarterectomy Trial and the Asymptomatic Carotid Atherosclerosis Study have suggested this to be true. However, each of these trials had relatively few patients with contralateral occlusion in the surgical arms of the studies. In contrast to these studies, there are multiple surgical series in the literature demonstrating excellent results of carotid endarterectomy in patients with contralateral total occlusion. Recently, advocates of carotid angioplasty and stenting have suggested that this technique may be preferable in patients with a contralateral occlusion because of the perceived poor outcomes with surgery. As carotid angioplasty and stenting becomes more popular, it is becoming even more crucial to better define those patients who are truly at increased risk following carotid endarterectomy; ultimately, this will help clinicians decide which patients may derive the most benefits from endovascular therapies. With these issues in mind, the purpose of this review is to examine results of carotid endarterectomy in patients with total occlusion of the contralateral carotid artery.