Bioresorbable Patch Offers New Alternative for Arterial Healing

When a patient experiences 70 percent or greater stenosis in the carotid artery — a condition that can cause lack of cerebral blood flow, stroke, and in some cases, death — surgeons perform a procedure known as carotid endarterectomy (CEA) to remove the plaque causing the artery stenosis.1,2 The procedure consists of a longitudinal incision made from the common to the internal carotid artery, allowing for removal of the plaque that deposits in the bifurcation.