Carotid angioplasty with stenting is a non-surgical medical procedure, whereby vascular surgeons restore normal blood flow within the carotid arteries affected by atherosclerosis .
Carotid arteries - or more simply carotids - are two large blood vessels passing at the sides of the neck, one on the right or one on the left; together with the vertebral arteries, they carry oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the brain and to all the anatomical structures of the head.
Carotid angioplasty and stenting are an alternative to carotid endarterectomy, a surgical procedure with the same therapeutic purposes.
ATTEROSCLEROSIS AND CAROTIDES
Atherosclerosis is that pathological process that causes the hardening and narrowing of the lumen of the arterial vessels of medium and large caliber.
The arteries are narrowed by deposits of fat, cholesterol, calcium and other substances, which, "traveling" in the blood, can position themselves and accumulate close to the inner wall of the vessels.
These deposits - called atheromas or atheromatous plaques - are dangerous both if they remain at the site of formation ( thrombosis ) and if they fall off ( embolism ).
Carotids are arteries particularly exposed to the process of atherosclerosis and, when this occurs, episodes of ischemic stroke or TIA ( transient ischemic attack ) may occur.
Doctors define the condition of narrowing (or stenosis) of the carotid arteries with the term obstructive disease of the carotid arteries or obstructive stenosis of the carotid arteries .
