A fifteen-year experience with carotid endarterectomy after a formal operative protocol requiring highly frequent patch angioplasty.

PURPOSE

The early and late outcomes of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) following a rigid protocol of patch angioplasty or occasionally interposition bypass grafting, when the arteriotomy required to obtain a complete internal carotid end point extended distal to the bulb segment, and primary closure, when it was limited to the bulb, were studied.

METHODS

From November 1983 to August 1998, 1360 consecutive primary CEAs were performed on 1133 patients (621 men, 512 women), with a mean age of 67 years. Of these patients, 3.8% (51) had primary closure, 66.4% (903) had greater saphenous vein patch angioplasty, 28.4% (386) had synthetic (359 Dacron, 27 polytetrafluoroethylene) patch angioplasty, and 1.4% (20) had vein interposition bypass grafting procedures. Indications were transient ischemic attack in 34.7% of patients (472), stroke in 16.6% of patients (226), nonlateralizing symptoms in 10.9% of patients (148), and asymptomatic stenosis 70% or greater in 37.8% of patients (514). The mean follow-up period was 4.6 years.

RESULTS

The 30-day mortality rate was 1.0% (13 patients; 11 cardiac-related deaths, 2 strokes). The 30-day stroke rate was 1.3% (18 patients; 13 ipsilateral strokes, 5 major, 8 minor). The combined 30-day stroke and death rate was 2.1%. Four of the strokes (1 death) were caused by the hyperperfusion syndrome. The 30-day ipsilateral major stroke or mortality rate was 1.2% (16 patients). The 30-day rate of ipsilateral major stroke or death from stroke was 0.4% (5 patients). There were two synthetic and one vein patch internal carotid occlusions in 30 days. Synthetic-patched CEAs were predicted by means of Cox proportional hazards analysis to have higher risk ratios than saphenous vein-patched CEAs for early and late stroke (1. 3; 95% CI, 1.7 to 1.0; P =.04), for 50% or greater restenosis (2.4; 95% CI, 3.4 to 1.6; P <.001), and for 70% or greater restenosis (2. 5; 95% CI, 3.6 to 1.7; P <.001). The cumulative mortality rate (Kaplan-Meier) was 13% at 5 years and 31% at 10 years. The cumulative stroke rate was 7% at 5 years and 14% at 10 years. The 50% or greater restenosis rate was higher in women than in men at 5 years (9% versus 5%; P =.02, Wilcoxon), but tended to equalize later. The 50% or greater restenosis rate was higher in synthetic-patched CEAs than in saphenous vein-patched CEAs (12% versus 1% at 1 year; 17% versus 3% at 4 years; and 24% versus 10% at 8 years; P <.001 by means of log-rank and Wilcoxon). Restenosis after 5 years was more frequently located in the distal common carotid artery (13 of 20 cases). Late reoperations were more frequent and occurred earlier in synthetic-patched CEAs (eight cases at a mean of 1.6 years) than vein-patched CEAs (14 cases at a mean of 6.9 years; P =.01). No strokes and one restenosis of 50% or greater occurred in the 51 primarily closed CEAs.

CONCLUSION

Patch angioplasty reconstruction of CEAs with arteriotomies that extend distal to the carotid bulb gives excellent early and long-term outcomes. Saphenous vein-patched CEAs are superior to synthetic patched CEAs for stroke and restenosis prevention. Primary closure is safe and durable when complete end points and arteriotomies are within the carotid bulb.