End-to-side anastomosis of rat carotid artery: comparison of different types of section and shape of the terminal end

Summary In 50 rats, different types of end-to-side carotid artery anastomoses were compared. In one technique, a longitudinal split in the long axis of the vessel was performed to enhance the diameter of the anastomosis. This theoretical advantage was not confirmed in this series. The clamping time, anastomoses time, and tamponade time were increased significantly when compared with a simple, slightly oblique end-to-side anastomosis. This study highlighted that the most simple type of end-to-side anastomosis gave less bleeding, achieved a quicker water-tight anastomosis and decreased the risk of late problems.