Two stroke-prevention procedures are equally beneficial for men and women, but effectiveness vary by age

Mar 1 2010

Physicians now have better information when tailoring their treatment plans

Two stroke-prevention procedures are safe and equally beneficial for men and women at risk for stroke, but the effectiveness does vary by age, say researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in collaboration with other North American stroke investigators.

In findings reported Feb. 26 at the International Stroke Conference in San Antonio, Texas, the researchers say physicians now have better information when tailoring their treatment plans for patients at risk for stroke. The study is called the Carotid Revascularization Endarterectomy vs. Stenting Trial (CREST).

Stroke, the third leading cause of death in the nation, is caused by an interruption in blood flow to the brain by a clot or bleeding. The carotid arteries on each side of the neck are the major source of blood flow to the brain. The buildup of cholesterol in the wall of the carotid artery, called atherosclerotic plaque, is one cause of stroke.

CREST compares endarteroctomy, a surgical procedure to clear blocked blood flow and prevent stroke, with carotid stenting, a newer procedure that involves threading a stent and expanding a small protective device in the artery to widen the blocked area and capture dislodged plaque.

The overall safety and efficacy of the two procedures essentially is the same with equal benefits for men and women, for patients who previously have had a stroke and for those who had not, researchers say. The most notable finding was the role of patient age in accounting for differences in comparing the two prevention procedures, says George Howard, Dr.PH., chair of biostatistics in UAB's School of Public Health and a CREST co-investigator.

"The fascinating finding is that in young people, say age 69 and younger, the stenting is better than the surgery. The younger the patient, the better stenting works," Howard says. "In contrast, in older people, defined as greater than age 70, the surgery is better than the stenting, and the benefits are greater as the age of the patient increases."

CREST is one of the largest randomized stroke-prevention trials in history, involving 2,502 patients at 117 centers in the United States and Canada during a nine-year period. It is funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and led by Thomas G. Brott, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla. Twenty-one CREST patients are enrolled in Alabama under the medical direction of William Jordan, M.D., chief of vascular surgery at UAB.

"The CREST trial provides doctors and patients with much needed risk/benefit information to help choose the best carotid procedure based on an individual's health history," says Walter J. Koroshetz, M.D., deputy director of NINDS. "This personalized decision-making should translate into improved patient outcomes."

Because people with carotid atherosclerosis also usually have atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries that supply the heart, the CREST trial tracks the rate of heart attacks, in addition to stroke and death.

In CREST, approximately half of the 2,502 patients had recent symptoms due to carotid disease such as a minor stroke, often called a transient ischemic attack (TIA), indicating a high risk for future stroke. The other half of patients had no symptoms but was found to have narrowing of the carotid artery on one of a variety of tests assessing narrowness and plaque.

CREST investigators did see more heart attacks in the surgical group, 2.3 percent compared to 1.1 percent in the stenting group, and they did see more strokes in the stenting group, 4.1 percent versus 2.3 percent for the surgical group in the weeks following the procedure. Overall the study found a lower stroke rate following surgery and a lower heart-attack rate after stenting a year after their procedure. The average age of CREST patients is 69.

"We like to counsel patients that they have some very good options for stroke prevention, these procedures are performed regularly and they can extend life and improve the quality of life significantly," Jordan says.

Source: University of Alabama at Birmingham