Endarterectomy is a surgical procedure to remove the atheromatousplaque material, or blockage, in the lining of an artery constricted by the buildup of deposits. It is carried out by separating the plaque from the arterial wall.
It was first performed on a subsartorial artery in 1946 by a Portuguese surgeon, João Cid dos Santos, at the University of Lisbon. In 1951, E. J. Wylie, an American, performed it on the abdominal aorta. The first successful reconstruction of the carotid artery was performed by Carrea, Molins, and Murphy in Argentina, later in the same year.[1]
Atherosclerotic plaque from a carotid endarterectomy specimen
An endarterectomy of the carotid artery in the neck is recommended to reduce the risk of stroke when the carotid artery is severely narrowed, particularly after a stroke to reduce the risk of additional strokes.[citation needed]
Coronary endarterectomy involves removing atheroma from the wall of blocked blood vessels (coronary) supplying the heart muscle. The concept was first introduced by Bailey[2] in the 1950s prior to the advent of coronary artery bypass surgery to help patients with angina and coronary artery disease. It is still used today when coronary artery bypass surgery proves difficult. Livesay[3] in Texas and Nair[4] in Leeds have published the largest series in the world.
^Thompson, Jesse E. (August 1996). "The Evolution of Surgery for the Treatment and Prevention of Stroke: The Willis Lecture". Stroke. 27 (8): 1427–1434. doi:10.1161/01.str.27.8.1427. PMID8711815.
