[Carotid Stenting in France after the EVA 3S and SPACE publications]

Angioplasty of stenoses of the carotid bifurcation is a revascularization procedure that is used successfully in many patients. With more than 10 years of experience now, the feasibility of carotid stenting has been demonstrated. Its distribution is highly variable depending on the country, with a mean penetration rate in Europe of 15% of the number of carotid revascularizations. However, the complication rate is highly variable from one series to another and depends on the type of patient treated and the operator's learning curve. The results of the first two randomized studies comparing endarterectomy and carotid stenting, EVA 3S in France and SPACE in Germany, have just been published. The conclusions of these studies only relate to symptomatic patients, who make up a small proportion of revascularized patients. At 30 days, the French study concluded that surgery was better, and the German study showed no advantage to stenting. The analysis of these results compared to other publications should make it possible to best define the current indications for carotid stenting.