Extra-intracranial anastomosis using a venous graft.

The authors describe a patient with ischaemic neurological incidents due to bilateral hypoplasia of the carotids. Because the use of the superficial temporal artery or the occipital artery was impossible, the extra-intracranial anastomosis was performed by a direct venous graft between the external carotid artery and the posterior temporal artery. The authors describe and illustrate the operation, emphasizing the particular difficulties due to differences in diameter of the arteries and the graft. Because postoperative control angiography demonstrated perfect permeability of the anastomosis, this technique is suggested for when a normal branch of sufficient diameter of the external carotid artery cannot be used.