Asymptomatic carotid stenosis: Revisionist history is usually wrong

In his landmark 1951 publication entitled “Occlusion of the Internal Carotid Artery,” C. Miller Fisher both described the pathogenesis of hemispheric stroke related to carotid bifurcation atherosclerosis and went on to speculate that “one day surgeons may even devise a way to remove the offending plaque and thereby prevent stroke.” His prophecy was soon realized when prophylactic carotid endarterectomy (CEA) was launched more or less simultaneously on three different continents in 1953. The fundamentals of this stroke preventive strategy remain clinically valid today, being supported by virtually every international practice guideline and in turn predicated on level 1 evidence.
Source: Journal of Vascular Surgery - Category: Surgery Authors: Tags: Editorial Source Type: research