Abstract:

Aim: was to estimate the importance of restoring blood flow in vertebral arteries in the segment V1 by stenting in patients with multivessel lesions of extracranial arteries and vertebrobasilar insufficiency (VBI).

Material and methods: study include 59 patients with a dominant, long-existing clinic of vertebrobasilar insufficiency, with multivessel lesions of brachiocephalic arteries, lower brain tolerance to ischemia, with the presence of stenosis of segment V1 of vertebral artery more than 70%, which is regarded by neurologists, as the main reason for VBI. All patients should have been undergone carotid revascularization. However, due to multivessel lesions and low perfusion reserve, all patients as the first stage of treatment - underwent stenting of V1 segment of vertebral artery. In 38 patients bare-metal stent were used, in 14 - drug-eluting stents, in 7 - renal stents. Distal protection was used in 12 patients. In remaining patients - stenting was performed without protection.

Results: in immediate postoperative period, technical, angiographic success and clinical improvement were noticed in 100% of patients. All 59 patients underwent the second and subsequent stages of cerebral revascularization without ischemic episodes. The duration of follow-up was from 6 months to 6 years. After 3 months, 55(93,2%) patients sustained clinical improvement, with no restenosis in stents. 4 patients (6,8%) had no clinical improvement: in one patient after 3 months developed ischemic stroke (IS) in vertebrobasilar system(VBS), due to the occlusion of the stent. 1 patients had stent restenosis with the increase of clinical manifestations of VBI, which required additional stenting. After 14 months, 1 patient after stenting had IS in VBS due to stent fractures caused by bone compression.

Conclusion: stenting of V1 segment of vertebral artery in patients with multivessel lesions of brachiocephalic arteries and clinic of VBI, can be considered as the first stage of cerebral revascularization in case of significant stenosis segment V1 vertebral artery and low tolerance to cerebral ischemia.

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