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Carotid artery stenosis

Stenosis arteriae carotis · Zúžení krkavice

What it is

Fatty plaque narrows the neck artery to the brain; fragments break off and cause strokes.

Symptoms & signs

  • Often none
  • a mini-stroke (TIA): brief weakness, numbness or loss of speech
  • temporary blindness in one eye (amaurosis fugax)
  • a whooshing sound (bruit) the doctor hears

🚩 Get help if…

  • call 112 / 911 now Sudden weakness or numbness of face, arm or leg
  • call 112 / 911 now Sudden trouble speaking or understanding
  • call 112 / 911 now Sudden loss of sight in one eye, like a curtain
  • see a doctor soon Symptoms that came and went within minutes

Where it strikes

Medical treatment

  • Duplex ultrasound
  • aspirin or clopidogrel and a high-dose statin
  • blood-pressure control
  • carotid endarterectomy within 2 weeks of symptoms for 50–99% narrowing
  • carotid stenting
  • transcarotid artery revascularisation (TCAR) — FDA-approved system since 2015

Natural & lifestyle

  • Stop smoking
  • Mediterranean diet
  • regular exercise
  • treat diabetes

Emerging & experimental

  • Plaque imaging to choose who needs surgery
  • PCSK9 and anti-inflammatory drugs (colchicine)

Alternative, off-label & anecdotal

Approaches used outside the guidelines, with what their supporters report and what testing has found so far.

  • Aged garlic extract — small trials slow soft plaque growth early / small studies
  • Vitamin K2 — trials on artery calcification disagree mixed evidence
  • EDTA chelation — the TACT2 trial (2024) in heart patients found no benefit not confirmed in trials
  • Nattokinase — lab and small studies; can raise bleeding risk with blood thinners anecdotal / traditional

ICD codes