Stent placement for arterial and venous cerebrovascular disease: preliminary experience.
OBJECTIVE
To report initial clinical experience with stent placement in the cerebrovascular circulation.


METHODS
Four patients underwent arterial or venous stent placement. Two patients had cervical internal carotid artery dissections, with aneurysms and stenoses of the distal cervical carotid artery. Two patients had venous occlusive disease involving the major dural sinuses, with substantial pressure gradients across the stenoses.


RESULTS
Immediately after stent placement, the true arterial lumina returned to normal diameter and both carotid aneurysms were more than 90% occluded. Follow-up angiography demonstrated continued improvement in the arterial aneurysms. Both patients with dural sinus venous occlusive disease showed substantial improvement of the sinus stenoses and substantial reversal of the pressure gradients after venous stent placement. At follow-up, these patients have done well.


CONCLUSIONS
This preliminary experience suggests there may be a role for stents in the management of arterial and venous cerebrovascular disease, including carotid artery dissection and venous occlusive disease.
Marks
M P
MP
Department of Radiology, Stanford University Medical Center, CA 94305-5105.
Dake
M D
MD
Steinberg
G K
GK
Norbash
A M
AM
Lane
B
B
D000328:Adult; D000784:Aortic Dissection / Q000628:therapy*; D000800:Angioplasty, Balloon; D002343:Carotid Artery, Internal; D016893:Carotid Stenosis / Q000628:therapy*; D002533:Cerebral Angiography; D002561:Cerebrovascular Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D003251:Constriction, Pathologic / Q000628:therapy; D003392:Cranial Sinuses; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D002532:Intracranial Aneurysm / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015607:Stents