Symptomatic carotid web linked with stroke recurrence
First study to quantify the risk shows second strokes are five times more likely than in other patients
Patients with a symptomatic carotid web are at high risk of recurrent stroke, and medical management alone may not provide adequate protection, researchers say.
A carotid web is a shelf-like fibrous band along the posterior wall of the internal carotid artery bulb and an “under-recognised cause of young stroke”, write the study authors in JAMA Neurology.
Although several studies have suggested that a carotid web raises the risk of recurrent stroke, the risk has not been quantified, they say.
The team studied more than 3400 patients from the MR CLEAN trial and MR CLEAN registry (median age 77, 53% men) in The Netherlands.
