[Comparative analysis of conventional and eversion carotid endarterectomy--prospective randomized study].

INTRODUCTION: Studies completed in the last decade of the 20th century showed benefits of carotid endarterectomy in the prevention of stroke in patients with a high-grade stenosis of the internal carotid artery.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this prospective, randomized study was the comparison of early and long-term results between the conventional and eversion carotid endarterectomy, and literature review.

METHOD: By the method of random choice, 103 patients were operated on using the eversion carotid endarterectomy and 98 patients using the conventional technique. Operative treatment was carried out under general anaesthesia. Following the clammping of the carotid artery, retrograde blood pressure was determined by a direct puncture of the internal carotid artery above the stenotic lesions. In patients with retrograde pressure below 20 mm Hg intraluminal shunting was routinely performed. Early results were estimated (during the first seven postoperative days) based on mortality, central neurological complications (stroke, TIA) and cranial or cervical nerve lesions. Long-term results were estimated (after at least two years) based on long-term survival rate, central neurological complications (stroke,TIA) and the incidence of haemodynamically significant restenosis of the carotid artery treated by endarterectomy.

RESULTS: The average time of clamming of the internal carotid artery in the eversion carotid anderectomy group was 5.36 minutes shorter than in the group treated by the conventional technique. Student's t-test showed a statistically highly significant difference in the time needed for clamming of the internal carotid artery between the two groups. The average duration of eversion endarterectomy (82 minutes) was most often 19 minutes shorter than the duration of the conventional endarterectomy (101 minutes). Student's t-test showed a statistically highly significant difference in the average length of surgeries. The distal intimal fixation was more often needed during the conventional carotid endarterectomy (34.7%) compared to eversion endarterectomy (3.9%). Chi 2-test showed a statistically highly significant difference.

CONCLUSION: Eversion carotid endarectomy represents a statistically significantly shorter procedure. Distal intimal fixation demanded by this procedure is very rare, clammping of the internal carotid artery is significantly shorter, and it also has a lower rate of the early neurological complications. Based on the results of this study, as well as the opinions of other authors, it can be concluded that the eversion carotid endarterectomy has an advantage over the conventional procedure.We recommend conventional procedure only in cases when retrograde pressure indicates the use of the intraluminal shunting.