Carotid Artery Disease

Your carotid arteries are two large blood vessels in your neck. They supply your brain with blood. If you have carotid artery disease, the arteries become narrow, usually from the buildup of cholesterol and other material. If a blood clot sticks in the narrowed arteries, blood can't reach your brain. This is one of the causes of stroke.

Carotid artery disease often does not cause symptoms, but there are tests that can tell your doctor if you have it. If the arteries are very narrow, you may need an operation called an endarterectomy to remove the plaque. For less severe narrowing, a medicine to prevent blood clots can reduce your risk of stroke. Another option for people who can't have surgery is carotid angioplasty. This involves placing balloons and/or stents into the artery to open it and hold it open.

Start Here

• Carotid Artery Disease(American Heart Association)
• Carotid Artery Disease(National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
• Questions and Answers about Carotid Endarterectomy(National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)

Basics	Learn More	Multimedia & Cool Tools
Overviews Latest News Diagnosis/Symptoms Treatment Prevention/Screening	Related Issues	Tutorials Videos
Research	Reference Shelf	For You
Clinical Trials Journal Articles	Directories Organizations	No links available

• Overviews
  • Carotid Artery Disease(Texas Heart Institute)

    Also available in Spanish

  • Carotid Artery Disease, Stroke, Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIAs)(Society for Vascular Surgery)
• Latest News
  • Hardened Arteries Threaten Obese, Diabetic Youth(05/26/2009, HealthDay)
• Diagnosis/Symptoms
  • Carotid Bruit(American Heart Association)
  • Carotid Ultrasound(National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
  • Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA)(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America)

    Also available in Spanish

  • Duplex Ultrasound(Society for Vascular Surgery)
  • MR Angiography (MRA)(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America)

    Also available in Spanish

• Treatment
  • Carotid Angioplasty and Stenting(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
  • Carotid Endarterectomy(Patient Education Institute)

    Also available in Spanish

  • Carotid Endarterectomy(Society for Vascular Surgery)
  • Carotid Stenting(Society for Vascular Surgery)
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• Prevention/Screening
  • Screening for Blockages in the Blood Vessels to the Brain: Recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force(American College of Physicians) - Links to PDF
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• Related Issues
  • The Carotid Artery and the Eye(American Academy of Ophthalmology)
  • What Is a Dissected Carotid Artery?(InteliHealth)
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• Tutorials
  • Carotid Endarterectomy(Patient Education Institute)

    Also available in Spanish

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• Videos
  • Carotid Artery Stenting(OR-Live) - One hour program - 09/28/2006
  • Innovations in Stroke Prevention: An Update on Carotid Stenting(OR-Live) - One hour program - 7/15/2008
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• Clinical Trials
  • ClinicalTrials.gov: Carotid Artery Diseases(National Institutes of Health)
  • ClinicalTrials.gov: Carotid Stenosis(National Institutes of Health)
  • ClinicalTrials.gov: Endarterectomy, Carotid(National Institutes of Health)
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• Journal Articles

  References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

  • Article: Comparing procedures for stroke prevention.
  • Article: Treatment of carotid artery stenosis: medical therapy, surgery, or stenting?
  • Article: Childhood moyamoya disease: quantitative evaluation of perfusion MR imaging--correlation with...
  • Carotid Artery Disease -- see more articles
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• Directories
  • Find a Vascular Specialist(Society for Vascular Surgery)
  • Find an Accredited Echocardiography Laboratory or Vascular Laboratory(American Society of Echocardiography)
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• Organizations
  • American Stroke Association
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

    Also available in Spanish

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• Stroke
• Blood, Heart and Circulation

• National Institutes of Health

  • The primary NIH organization for research on Carotid Artery Disease is the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke