title: Stent-assisted percutaneous angioplasty for extra-cranial carotid disease:experience at Singapore General Hospital.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study aims to analyse the results of carotid stenting in a tertiary referral centre in Singapore.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective analysis of all carotid artery stenting (CAS) cases in a single centre from March 1997 to December 2008 was performed. Sixty successful procedures were performed in 61 patients, with bilateral stenting in 1 patient, and 2 failed procedures. The majority were Chinese (78.7%) and males (77.0%), with a high proportion having hypertension (82.0%) and hypercholesterolaemia (78.7%). The majority (91.8%) of patients were high surgical risk candidates, primarily due to cardiac risk factors. Ten patients (16.4%) had prior neck irradiation for nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and 3 patients each (4.9%) had previous endarterectomy and contralateral occlusion. A distal embolic protection device was used in 71.7% of cases.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Technical success was 96.8%. The 30-day stroke and death rate was 13.8%, comparable to reported results for this high surgical risk population.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CAS is a technically feasible and a relatively safe alternative to endarterectomy to treat extracranial carotid stenosis, especially in patients who are inoperable or at high surgical risk.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Apoorva
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gogna
authors.forename: Narayan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Lath
authors.forename: Hui Meng
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Bien Soo
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Meng Cheong
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Tian Hai
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Koh
authors.forename: Soo Teik
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Maung Myint
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Htoo
authors.forename: Winston E H
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Lim
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017130:Angioplasty / Q000379:methods*; D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000379:methods*; D002340:Carotid Artery Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006769:Hospitals, General; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012306:Risk; D012846:Singapore; D015607:Stents