Surgery or angioplasty for opening a clogged neck artery?
Surgery or angioplasty for opening a clogged neck artery?
For now, surgery is the best choice for most people with a narrowed carotid artery.
Artery-opening balloons and the tiny, wire-mesh cages known as stents offer a safe, effective alternative to bypass surgery for treating cholesterol-clogged arteries that feed the heart. A few inches higher, in the arteries that supply the brain, it's not yet clear if stents rival surgery. It isn't that angioplasty doesn't open narrowed carotid arteries. It does. "What's missing is the evidence to show that carotid angioplasty is the equivalent of surgery in different groups of people," says Dr. Marc Schermerhorn, chief of endovascular surgery at Harvard-affiliated Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
To continue reading this article, you must log in.
Subscribe to Harvard Health Online for immediate access to health news and information from Harvard Medical School.
- Research health conditions
- Check your symptoms
- Prepare for a doctor's visit or test
- Find the best treatments and procedures for you
- Explore options for better nutrition and exercise
I'd like to receive access to Harvard Health Online for only $4.99 a month.
Sign Me UpAlready a member? Login ».
Disclaimer:
As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content. Please note the date of last review or update on all articles.
No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician.
