Carotid surgery under local anesthesia in the elderly

Carotid endarterectomy in 39 elderly patients was carried out under local anesthesia and neuroleptic analgesia. There were no deaths within 30 days. Two patients required an intraoperative shunt because of signs of ischemic changes (aphasia, motor changes) during two-minute test cross-clamping. In two patients, transient vocal cord paresis was observed, and seven patients (18%) experienced immediate postoperative hypertension. Our results support the contention that in awake elderly patients the need for an intraoperative shunt can be accurately assessed by simple neurological monitoring. Carotid surgery under local anesthesia and neuroleptic analgesia appears to be a safe procedure, and is especially recommended for elderly patients with hypertension, diabetes mellitus or ischemic heart disease.