THE RELATIONSHIP OF POSTOPERATIVE HYPERTENSION TO COMPLICATIONS FOLLOWING CAROTID ENDARTERECTOMY

Google Scholar
  • 1 January 1980
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 88  (4) , 575-580
Abstract
Severe postoperative hypertension following carotid endarterectomy is a serious and poorly understood clinical problem associated with an increased mortality rate and increased incidence of neurologic deficit. This complication, which is defined as a sustained elevation of systolic pressure > 200 mm Hg requiring pharmacologic control, occurred following 19% of 253 carotid procedures. Preoperative hypertension is the single most important determinate in the development of postoperative hypertension. The incidence of preoperative hypertension in patients who developed postoperative hypertension was 79.6% compared to 57.4% in patients who did not develop this complication (P < 0.01). There was a significantly increased incidence of neurologic deficit and operative mortality rate in the group who developed postoperative hypertension. There were 5 neurologic deficits in the group who developed postoperative hypertension for an incidence of 10.2%. The incidence of neurologic deficit in the group who did not develop postoperative hypertension was 3.4%. The only deaths were in the postoperative hypertensive group. The hypertensive patient is at greater risk for postoperative hypertension, which is associated with increased neurologic morbidity and mortality.