Nursefriendly.com: Carotid Artery Stenosis

Friday, February 4, 2011

Carotid Artery Stenosis, American Heart Association

What is carotid artery stenosis or carotid artery disease?

Carotid artery stenosis is the narrowing of the carotid arteries. These are the main arteries in the neck that supply blood to the brain. Carotid artery stenosis, also called carotid artery disease, is a major risk factor for ischemic stroke. (This is the most common form of stroke and is usually caused by a blood clot plugging an artery.)

The narrowing is usually caused by plaque in a blood vessel. Plaque forms when cholesterol, fat and other substances build up in the inner lining of an artery. This process is called atherosclerosis.

How is carotid artery stenosis diagnosed?

Carotid artery stenosis may or may not cause symptoms. A doctor may hear an abnormal sound called a bruit (BROO'e) when listening to the artery with a stethoscope. The stenosis can be easily detected with an ultrasound probe placed on the side of the neck near the carotid arteries. This is called carotid ultrasonography.

How is carotid artery stenosis treated?

Depending on the degree of stenosis and the patient's overall condition, carotid artery stenosis can usually be treated with surgery. The procedure is called carotid endarterectomy. It removes the plaque that caused the carotid artery to narrow. Carotid endarterectomy has proven to benefit patients with arteries stenosed (narrowed) by 70 percent or more. For people with arteries narrowed less than 50 percent, anti-clotting medicine is usually prescribed to reduce the risk of ischemic stroke. Examples of these drugs are antiplatelet agents and anticoagulants.

Carotid angioplasty may be another treatment option. It uses balloons and/or stents to open a narrowed artery.
For stroke information, call the American Stroke Association at 1-888-4-STROKE.

via americanheart.org

To read more click on the americanheart.org link.

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Patients With Blocked Carotid Arteries May Not Need Stroke Screening | National Nursing News

Patients with blocked neck arteries need screening for stroke risk only if they have other risk factors, according to new guidelines from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, American College of Cardiology and other groups.
A committee of stroke prevention specialists issued the guidelines after agreeing there is not sufficient evidence of benefit from widespread screening. The members hope the guidelines provide new information to help clinicians determine treatment approaches for their patients.
Screening is useful “if your doctor hears abnormal blood flow when listening to your [carotid] arteries, or if you have two or more risk factors for stroke (such as high cholesterol or a family history),” said Jonathan L. Halperin, MD, co-chairman of the writing committee and professor of medicine at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, in a news release.
Risk factors for stroke include age, family history of stroke, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, diabetes, obesity, atrial fibrillation, physical inactivity, sickle cell disease and other heart or blood vessel diseases.
The committee also issued recommendations regarding carotid endarterectomy and carotid stenting, two procedures for treating arteries. Both procedures are reasonable and safe, according to the committee, when arteries are more than 50% blocked.
“The guidelines support carotid surgery as a tried-and-true treatment for most patients,” said Thomas G. Brott, MD, committee co-chairman and professor of neurology and director of research at the Mayo Clinic campus in Jacksonville, Fla.
“However, for patients who have a strong preference for less invasive treatments, carotid stenting offers a safe alternative. Because of the anatomy of their arteries or other individual considerations, some patients may be more appropriate for surgery and others for stenting.”

via news.nurse.com

To read the rest of the article, click on the news.nurse.com link.

This will be good news for people for who Carotid Endarterectomy has been suggested.