American Heart Association Statement Gives Guidance On Minimally Invasive Procedures To Treat Diseased Brain Vessels

Main Category: Cardiovascular / Cardiology
Also Included In: Neurology / Neuroscience;  Stroke;  Vascular
Article Date: 07 Apr 2009 - 2:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

The use of minimally invasive procedures to treat brain blood vessel diseases has made tremendous strides in the past decade along with advances in the field of catheter-based interventions. The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association is providing recommendations for their use based on the best available evidence.

The new statement, published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, addresses the use of stenting, coil embolization (using metal coils to close off abnormal blood vessels), in-artery delivery of clot busting drugs, and mechanical clot-removing devices for the treatment of:

-- brain aneurysms,

-- narrowed brain arteries,

-- acute ischemic stroke, and

-- arteriovenous malformations (abnormal connections between arteries and veins).

A summary of recommendations can be found in Table 2 of the statement:

Indications for the Performance of Intracranial Endovascular Neurointerventional Procedures

Authors of the statement are Philip M. Meyers, M.D., Chair; H. Christian Schumacher, M.D., Co-Chair; Randall T. Higashida, M.D., Co-Chair; Stanley L. Barnwell, M.D., Ph.D.; Mark A. Creager, M.D.; Rishi Gupta, M.D.; Cameron G. McDougall, M.D.; Dilip K. Pandey, M.D.; David Sacks, M.D.; and Lawrence R. Wechsler, M.D.

Source: American Heart Association

• Additional
• References
• Citations