Internal carotid artery stump angioplasty for the treatment of cerebrovascular occlusive disease.

Nineteen patients underwent a total of 21 stump angioplasty procedures for an occluded internal carotid artery. Indications for surgery included the preparation of the donor vessel for a subsequent extracranial-intracranial bypass procedure, the occurrence of emboli to the intracranial vasculature from the external carotid artery circulation, and the association with symptomatic occlusive disease of the external carotid artery accompanying occlusion of the ipsilateral internal carotid artery. The technique utilized and the results obtained in these 19 patients are presented. In select patients, the removal of an occluded internal carotid artery stump via a stump angioplasty is beneficial in preventing the catastrophic sequela of embolic cerebrovascular disease.