[CT and histological findings and treatment outcomes after carotid endarterectomy for symptomatic cervical carotid artery stenosis in octogenarians].

Symptomatic cervical carotid artery stenosis is one of the common causes of ischemic stroke in octogenarians. The records for 90 consecutive patients with symptomatic cervical carotid artery stenosis treated by carotid endarterectomy(CEA)were analyzed retrospectively. The patients were divided into two groups:21 patients aged 80 years or over and 69 patients aged less than 80 years. CT angiography revealed that ulcer formation was significantly more common and the length of carotid artery stenosis was significantly greater in the octogenarians. Histological examination of the plaque revealed no significant difference between the two groups in terms of ulcer formation, lipid content, and intraplaque hemorrhage. However, all three of these pathological findings were present in a significantly higher number of octogenarians. No significant difference was observed for new ischemic lesions on diffusion-weighted MR imaging, neurological complications, or cardiac and pulmonary complications. However, treatment with an albumin preparation and loop diuretics was significantly more common in octogenarians after CEA. The present study suggests that with careful postoperative management CEA can be safely performed in symptomatic patients aged 80 years or over with almost the same risk as that for patients aged less than 80 years.

[Bilateral ptosis and upper gaze palsy with pupil sparing caused by midbrain hemorrhage].

The arrangement within the midbrain oculomotor nerve complex and crossed innervation of the superior rectus muscle are not elucidated in humans. A 65-year-old woman visited our hospital complaining of difficulty opening her eyes. Neurological examination revealed bilateral ptosis and impaired supraduction. The pupils prompty constricted to light. Results of CT and MRI demonstrated that there was a hematoma located in the dorsal midbrain tegmentum that spared the rostral mid-brain. It was presumed that the nerves of the superior rectus and levator palpebrae lie in the midbrain tegmentum more dorsally and medially than the others. Furthermore, crossed innervation of the superior rectus muscle can explain that lesions located in the dorsal midbrain tegmentum cause more often impaired supraduction.