ABSTRACT
Between 1978 and 1988, 215 patients with an average age of 67 years, underwent 246 carotid endarterectomies. Two hundred ten (85.4%) patients were symptomatic, and 36 (14.6%) were asymptomatic. Six patients (2.4%) had a postoperative stroke, and all had immediate reoperation. One of these patients died (30 day mortality rate, 0.4% for the series), and two (0.8%) recovered completely, whereas three (1.2%) had a mild permanent neurologic deficit. Two patients (0.8%) had nonfatal myocardial infarction. Mean follow-up of 42.2 months (range, 1 to 126 months) was achieved. At 5 and 8 years actuarial survival rates of 82% and 66% and stroke-free survival rates of 67% and 37% were observed. Actuarial stroke free rates of 90% at 5 and 8 years were noted. By introducing and observing guidelines that required preoperative study of most clearly defined classes of patients before admission for surgical treatment, the average length of stay for carotid endarterectomy was lowered from 9.5 days in the first 5 years of the study to 5.8 days in the second 5 years (p = 0.001). Average hospital charges, expressed in constant dollars, decreased from $3113 in the first 5 years to $2620 in the second 5 years (p = 0.02) despite an 88% inflationary increase in medical consumer price index. This experience shows that the length of hospitalization of patients with carotid endarterectomy can be reduced and the cost of admission lowered without untoward effect on perioperative morbidity and mortality rates.
Subject(s)
Carotid Arteries/surgery , Endarterectomy/adverse effects , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Carotid Artery Diseases/complications , Carotid Artery Diseases/economics , Carotid Artery Diseases/mortality , Carotid Artery Diseases/surgery , Costs and Cost Analysis/economics , Endarterectomy/economics , Endarterectomy/mortality , Fees and Charges , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Length of Stay/economics , Life Tables , Male , Massachusetts , Middle AgedABSTRACT
A young man with polycystic kidney disease was seen initially with an brain-stem infarction. Postmortem examination disclosed a dissecting aneurysm of the basilar artery and a saccular aneurysm of the right vertebral artery. Dissecting intracranial aneurysms rarely are associated with saccular aneurysms and, to our knowledge, have not been reported in association with polycystic kidney disease.
Subject(s)
Aortic Dissection/complications , Intracranial Aneurysm/complications , Polycystic Kidney Diseases/complications , Adult , Aortic Dissection/diagnosis , Basilar Artery , Humans , Intracranial Aneurysm/diagnosis , Intracranial Aneurysm/etiology , Male , Polycystic Kidney Diseases/diagnosis , Vertebral ArteryABSTRACT
A 23-year-old woman with pernicious anemia, previously treated with folic acid, demonstrated an unusually rapid and severe course of neurologic deterioration. She was first seen with coma, myelopathy, and peripheral neuropathy. Her EEG showed repetitive nonperiodic suppression bursts, probably related to the severe impairment of consciousness. A sural nerve biopsy specimen revealed prominent axonal degeneration. With cyanocobalamin treatment, she regained normal mentation and the use of the upper limbs. She remains paraplegic, however, with a T10 sensory level.
