Treatment of High-Grade Basilar Artery Stenosis by Primary Stenting

ABSTRACT

Patients with symptomatic stenosis of the basilar artery have a poor prognosis and the treatment options are limited. Surgical bypasses are technically difficult and there is no proven benefit. Percutaneous angioplasty shows significant complications because of dissection, restenosis secondary to elastic recoil and embolic phenomena. The medical treatment with aspirin and wafarin showed the annual risk of 20% for symptomatic basilar artery stenosis as repoted in WASID(Warfarin-Aspirin Symptomatic Intracranial Disease)study. We report a patient with symptomatic high grade stenosis of the basilar artery refractory to appropriate maximal medical therapy, in whom endovascular stenting was performed successfully without preliminary balloon angioplasty. Excellent angiographic result was achieved and there were no procedural and periprocedural complications. The patient was asymptomatic except preprocedural mild dysarthria and had no neurological symptoms during clinical follow-up of 2 months at outpatient department. Primary stenting of basilar artery stenosis may be an alternative to balloon angioplasty for patient with symptomatic lesions refractory to medical therapy or in whom anticoagulation is contraindicated.