carotid artery

Introduction: Carotid space is a deep neck space within the carotid sheath. .Mosher called carotid sheath as the Lincoln Highway of the neck. Abscess in this space is rare to be seen by young Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) surgeons in this era of early diagnosis and good antibiotics. We are reporting a case of isolated carotid space abscess in a 20 year old male to familiarize young surgeons with this abscess. Case report: A 20 year old young boy came to our Outpatient Department (OPD) with complaints of fever, painful neck swelling, progressive difficulty in swallowing from the last 7 days. Contrast Enhanced Computed Tomography (CECT) was done which revealed abscess located adjacent to carotid artery in the carotid sheath. Incision and drainage was done and carotid sheath was opened and pus drained .Patient was discharged after few days on oral antibiotics. Conclusion: Carotid space abscesses are rarely seen in developed countries. Tender and fluctuating swelling over the carotid artery area points towards it. CECT is the investigation of choice. Needle aspiration should be avoided especially by less trained persons. Small abscesses may respond to intravenous antibiotics but when frank and large abscess is formed, incision and drainage is the treatment of choice.

The objective of this paper is to emphasis the AngioCT features of carotid dissection/mural hematoma. The image show an internal carotid artery with narrowly eccentric lumen surrounded by a crescent-shaped hypodense mural thickening, with a visibly enhancing vessel wall. The carotid hematoma is a hypodense mural thickening that leads to expansion of the arterial wall, compression of the lumen and release of thrombogenic factors by intimal damage. Hematoma between the intima and media causes vessel expansion diameter and a narrow eccentric lumen. Peripheral hyper density is due to the contrast enhancement of the vasa vasorum in the adventitial layer. The physician should be familiar with the imagiologic features of carotid arterial disease, due to the diferent treatment options.

Objective: We evaluated the 30-day outcomes of early (≤ 14 days) or delayed (15 days to three months) carotid revascularization (CR) performed in patients who presented acute brain infarction secondary to internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis. Methods: We included all patients with a recent cerebral infarction from July 2010 to June 2014 who underwent CR in our center within three months after the onset of symptoms for ICA stenosis. Data were retrospectively collected. Two groups were identifi ed: Group A included patients who underwent early CR within the first fourteen days after symptom onset, and Group B, patients who underwent delayed CR, from the fifteenth day up to the third month after symptom onset. Death, stroke and major adverse cardiac events (MACE) were analyzed. Results: Seventy-one patients underwent CR (73.2% men, with a median age of 71). Nineteen patients underwent early CR and 52 underwent delayed CR. The mean interval from initial examination to surgery was 9.5 days (range, 3-14 days) in Group A and 42 days (range, 15-92 days) in Group B. No complication occurred in Group A within the 30 postoperative days. In Group B, no MACE or death was observed and two patients presented with post-operative stroke (3.8%). Conclusion: This retrospective study confi rmed the satisfactory outcomes of early CR after acute brain infarct. Accurate clinical and radiological selection of patients prevents early neurological complications.

Background: Cerebral small vessel disease and extracranial atherosclerotic carotid disease are manifestations of silent cerebrovascular disease (CVD). Information on these two pathologies in hypertensive population with low cardiovascular risk (CVR) is scarce. Objective: To explore frequency and characteristics of silent CVD in hypertensive adults and cognitive repercussion of these alterations. Methods: 39 hypertensive patients (mean age: 53.5 years) were studied. Cerebral magnetic resonance imaging (3T), doppler ultrasound of the carotid artery and neuropsychological studies were obtained. Results: 79% of patients presented white matter lesions (WML), 18% showed only cerebral atrophy and/or enlarged perivascular spaces, 60% presented hyperplasia of intimal media complex (IMC) and/or atheroma plaques. In women, a significant correlation was observed between IMC thickness and bifrontal index, and WML was greater in patients with carotid plaques. A non-significant decrease in neuropsychological performance was observed in the groups of patients with intra and/or extracerebral injury and a negative correlation with the bifrontal index in men was found. Conclusion: Frequency of intra and extracerebral silent CVD was high in hypertensive adults with low to moderate CVR. WML and brain atrophy were partially related with carotid lesions. Age significantly influenced the appearance of intra and extracerebral lesions. Cognitive performance did not decrease significantly due to the presence of these lesions.

The association between intracranial large vessel occlusion (LVO) and concurrent steno-occlusive lesion of an ipsilateral extracranial internal carotid artery (ICA) is considered a tandem occlusion (TO) [1]. In approximately half of TO, the first clinical manifestation are acute occlusions of the extracranial ICA associated with occlusion of the middle cerebral artery (MCA), with additional occlusion of the intracranial ICA in up to 25% of these cases.[2] This particular lesion subset is technically challenging for endovascular treatment (EVT) and is also characterized by lower success rates of intravenous thrombolysis [3], worse prognosis compared to intracranial occlusions alone, and higher rates of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage [4]. The optimal approach regarding EVT of TO remains controversial, and reports in this regard are scarce. There are two proposed strategies according to the selection of the first lesion to be treated. The proximal approach comprises stenting of the proximal cervical ICA followed by mechanical thrombectomy (MT) of the intracranial vessel, whereas the distal approach involves MT followed by stenting of the cervical ICA [3–14]. Besides, there other clinically relevant unresolved aspects regarding the treatment of these patients, such as concomitant use of intravenous thrombolysis, the need for stenting compared to angioplasty alone, as well as the most adequate antiplatelet strategy after treatment. Accordingly, we aimed to report the procedural and clinical outcomes of a real-world experience in a comprehensive stroke center regarding EVT of anterior circulation acute ischemic stroke (AIS) associated with a TO.

Background: Stroke occurs in 11% of patients with SCA before 20 years of age. In Northwestern Tanzania, the prevalence of stroke among children living with SCA under the age 15 years is 16.9%, of which might be attributed to the absence of routine screening for the risk of stroke by using Transcranial Doppler Ultrasound (TCD). Screening with TCD allows preventive measures such as chronic blood transfusion to be done which has led to the reduction of stroke by 92%.Methods: This was a prospective analytical cross sectional study which enrolled 267 SCA children aged 2 to 16 years attending Bugando Medical Centre Pediatric Sickle Cell Clinic from July 2019 to June 2020. Assessment of factors associated with elevated TCD included a clinical history of stroke in sibling, death in sibling, temperature, oxygen saturation in room air, blood pressure, hemoglobin level and total white blood cell count. TCD was done by accessing transtemporal window and recording the highest time average mean of maximum velocity (TAMMV) of major vessels mainly, middle cerebral artery (MCA) and distal internal carotid artery (dICA).Results: The median age of enrolled was 6.6 (IQR: 4-9) years. The prevalence of elevated TCD (> 170 cm/s)was found to be 21% (56/267). By multivariate logistic regression, low oxygen saturation in room air, p - value = 0.037, OR 1.08 [95% CI 1.00-1.17] and low hemoglobin level, p - value = 0.001, OR 1.76 [95% CI 1.26-2.45] were statistically significantly associated with elevated TCD among children living with SCA.Conclusion: The high prevalence of elevated TCD velocity, with low hemoglobin and low oxygen saturation in room air as associated factors under multivariate logistic regression, warrants routine TCD screening for children with SCA aged 2 to 16 years.