Risk factors in carotid artery surgery: an evaluation of 414 operations

Four hundred and fourteen carotid reconstructions performed on 352 patients during the years 1971-82 were analysed retrospectively. Fifty-eight percent of the patients were operated on because of hemispheric transient ischaemic attacks (TIA). Twenty-eight percent had suffered a stroke before surgery. The overall combined mortality and morbidity was 7.7%. The procedure mortality was 2.9% with a slightly higher mortality i.e. 5.9% in the stroke group although not significantly higher than among non-stroke patients with a mortality of 1.4%. Patients of more than 70-years had a significantly higher operative mortality (11.1%) than the rest of the patients (1.7%). Non-fatal strokes occurred in 20 patients (4.8%). No correlation was found with the degree of stenosis of the contralateral artery.