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Percutaneous treatment of symptomatic vertebral artery stenosis with coronary stents
1Department of Radiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee 53226, USA. drescher@mcw.edu
Insights
Atherosclerosis in vertebral arteries causes significant problems, and treatment is debated. Coronary stenting successfully treated two patients with vertebral artery stenosis and contralateral occlusions causing vertebral basilar insufficiency.
Area of Science:
- Vascular Surgery
- Interventional Cardiology
- Neurology
Background:
- Vertebral artery atherosclerosis is a critical clinical issue.
- Established treatment protocols for vertebral artery disease are lacking.
- Vertebral basilar insufficiency (VBI) results from impaired blood flow in the posterior circulation.
Observation:
- Two patients presented with VBI.
- The patients had stenosis at the vertebral artery origins and occlusions in the contralateral vertebral artery.
- These complex anatomical challenges complicated treatment decisions.
Findings:
- Percutaneous coronary stent placement was employed as a treatment strategy.
- The coronary stents were successfully deployed at the vertebral artery origins.
- Both patients demonstrated positive outcomes following the intervention.
Implications:
- Coronary stent placement may be a viable option for treating complex vertebral artery stenosis.
- This approach offers a potential solution for patients with limited treatment alternatives.
- Further research is warranted to establish the long-term efficacy and safety of this technique.
Abstract:
Atherosclerotic disease of the vertebral artery can pose a significant clinical problem. The treatment of that disease is not uniformly accepted. We report two cases of patients with vertebral basilar insufficiency due to stenosis of the vertebral artery origins and contralateral occlusions that were treated percutaneously with coronary stent placement.