Eversion carotid endarterectomy--our experience after 20 years of carotid surgery and 9897 carotid endarterectomy procedures.

BACKGROUND

The aim of this article is to review our experience in surgical treatment of carotid atherosclerosis using eversion carotid endarterectomy (eCEA) in 9,897 patients performed in the last 20 years, with particular attention to diagnostic approach, surgical technique, medical therapy, and final outcome.

METHODS

From January 1991 to December 2010, 9,897 primary eCEAs were performed for high-grade carotid stenosis. Patients treated for restenosis after previous carotid surgery were excluded from the analysis. Follow-up included routine clinical evaluation and noninvasive surveillance, with duplex scanning, 1 and 6 months after surgery, and annually afterward.

RESULTS

The majority of the patients were symptomatic (stroke, 42.8%; transient ischemic attack, 55.1% [focal cerebral and retinal ischemia]), whereas only 2.1% of the patients were asymptomatic. For the final diagnosis, duplex scanning was performed in 83.4% of patients and angiography in only 16.3% (P < 0.001). Average carotid artery clamping time was 11.9 ± 3.2 minutes, and the majority of the patients were operated under general anesthesia (99.4%). Intraoperative shunting and local anesthesia were rarely performed; 0.6% of the patients were operated under local anesthesia, and in 0.5% of the patients, intraluminal shunt was used. Neurological and total morbidity showed a steady decline over time, with rate of neurological morbidity of 1.1% and total morbidity of 3.9% at the end of 2010. Neurological mortality and total mortality also showed a steady decline over time, with rate of neurological mortality of 0.3% and total mortality of 0.8% at the end of 2010. There was a low rate of both, nonsignificant restenosis (<50%), which was verified in 2.1% of the patients, and significant restenosis (>50%), which was observed in 4.3% of the patients.

CONCLUSION

Our data show that eCEA is a reliable surgical technique for the treatment of atherosclerotic carotid disease, with low morbidity and mortality. The specificity of our experience is the significant number of patients with preoperative stroke, but despite this fact, results are comparable with previously published series. It also highlights the importance of comprehensive surgical training in reducing complications.