Endovascular Treatment for Tandem Internal Carotid Stenosis. Development of a New Shunt Tube for PTA

Three patients with tandem internal carotid stenoses were treated in one operation including carotid endarterectomy (CEA) for the proximal stenosis and percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) for the distal stenosis. We devised a Y-shaped shunt tube which we used for CEA, while a PTA balloon catheter was introduced via the tube to perform PTA guided by portable digital subtraction angiography (DSA). No cerebrovascular events occurred during follow-up. Our approach avoids the risk of a second procedure while effectively treating tandem stenoses.