engleski

Clinical significance of HITS in patients with cardiac and carotid source of emboli

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of cerebral emboli signals in patients with cardiac and carotid embolic source and evaluate the findings with neurological incidents. A total of 141 patients with carotid disease (21) and cardiac (120) diseases was examined. Patients with carotid disease were divided into 3 groups regarding the stenosis severity (mild, moderate and severe). Simultaneous monitornig of MCAs by TCD was performed over 60 minutes. Emboli signals were categorised into 4 groups according to the intensity of the Doppler apmlitude. A group of 30 patients was followed up during one year. Among 120 patients with cardiac disease. 51 had emboli signals (42.5 percent), and 31 (60.7 percent) of them had a stroke or TIA in history. The prevalence of emboli signals was the highest in patients with prosthetic heart valve, while patients with myocardiopathy had the least number of detected emboli. Among 21 patients with carotid disease, 8 (38.1 percent) had detectable emboli signals. In the group with severe stenosis, 5 (62.5 percent) patients had emboli signals, while no emboli were detected in the group with mild stenosis. The majority of patients with carotid stenosis had previously a stroke or TIA (87.5 percent), and after carotid endarterectomy no emboli were detected and none of them had new neurological incident. Among 22 followed up patients with cardiac disease, 1 had stroke and 6 had one or more TIAs.

transcranial Doppler; emboli; cardiac disease; carotid disease

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