Safety of early endarterectomy in patients with symptomatic carotid artery stenosis: an international multicenter study

Background and purpose Although the latest recommendations suggest that carotid endarterectomy (CEA) should be performed in symptomatic carotid artery stenosis (sCAS) patients within 2 weeks of the index event, only a minority of patients undergo surgery within the recommended time‐frame. The aim of this international multicenter study was to prospectively evaluate the safety of early CEA in patients with sCAS in everyday clinical practice settings. Methods Consecutive patients with non‐disabling acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) or transient ischaemic attack (TIA) due to sCAS (≥70%) underwent early (≤14 days) CEA at five tertiary‐care stroke centers during a 2‐year period. Primary outcome events included stroke, myocardial infarction (MI) or death occurring during the 30‐day follow‐up period and were defined according to the International Carotid Stenting Study criteria. Results A total of 165 patients with sCAS [mean age 69 ± 10 years; 69% men; 70% AIS; 6% crescendo TIA; 8% with contralateral internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion] underwent early CEA (median elapsed time from symptom onset 8 days). Urgent CEA (≤2 days) was performed in 20 cases (12%). The primary outcomes of stroke and MI were 4.8% [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.5%–8.1%] and 0.6% (95% CI 0%–1.8%). The combined outcome event of non‐fatal stroke, non‐fatal MI or death was 5.5% (95% CI 2.0%–9.0%). Crescendo TIA, contralateral ICA occlusion and urgent CEA were not associated (P > 0.2) with a higher 30‐day stroke rate. Conclusions Our findings indicate that the risk of early CEA in consecutive unselected patients with non‐disabling AIS or TIA due to sCAS is acceptable when the procedure is performed within 2 weeks (or even within 2 days) from symptom onset. Click here for the corresponding questions to this CME article.