Registry Report on Kinetics of Rescue Antiplatelet Treatment to Abolish Cerebral Microemboli After Carotid Endarterectomy

Cerebral microemboli signals (MES) are associated with increased risk of acute stroke syndromes. We compared the effects on cerebral microemboli after carotid endarterectomy of tirofiban with dextran-40. We used transcranial Doppler ultrasound to study transient MES acutely after carotid endarterectomy between August 2000 and December 2010 in 128 subjects refractory to preoperative antiplatelet treatment. Antithrombotic treatment was given for MES ≥50 hour(-1) (tirofiban: 40 patients [age 74 ± 1 {SEM}, males 27, and white 38]; dextran-40: 34 patients [age 69 ± 2, males 22, white 30]). In 54 patients with MES