PHILADELPHIA, Nov 10, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- U.S. researchers link increased
use of carotid arterial stenting to poorer outcomes such as heart attack and
stroke.
The study, published in the Journal of Vascular Surgery, associated carotid
arterial stenting -- a procedure treating the narrowed neck artery to increase
blood flow to the head -- to higher death rates and adverse clinical outcomes,
including heart attack and stroke.
The researchers attribute worsened clinical outcomes to the greater number of
procedures done -- going from 266 to 1,015 per month after the procedure was
covered by Medicare in 2005.
Lead author Dr. Peter Groeneveld of the University of Pennsylvania School of
Medicine said carotid arterial stenting is often the only option for patients
who are not healthy enough to undergo surgery. However, the state of health of
the patients may inevitably affect clinical outcomes from the procedure,
Groeneveld said.
"Nevertheless, stenting should remain a viable and effective treatment option
that doctors and patients consider judiciously," Groeneveld said in a statement.
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