Carotid ultrasound to prevent stroke
In people who have had a stroke or warning symptoms known as transient ischemic attacks or TIAs, opening a severely blocked carotid artery reduces the risk of future stroke. But because carotid surgery itself carries the risk of causing a stroke, it's important to perform the procedure only on people who really need it. It's not well established that the benefits of opening a blocked artery in people with no symptoms outweigh the risks. In addition, screening people at low risk only identifies 1% or 2% who have severely narrowed carotid arteries. That means you are unlikely to benefit from the screening.
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