Physiological Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to Improve Carotid Endarterectomy Outcomes

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre50 enrolled

Overview

The carotid arteries are blood vessels in the neck that supply blood to the brain. Carotid stenosis disease is defined as a narrowing of these arteries due to the build up of plaque. The plaque material can also break off and move into the brain. The resulting blockage of blood supply to a portion of the brain is what causes 80% of all strokes. One treatment option is to have surgery on the carotid artery and remove the plaque. This procedure is called a carotid endarterectomy (CEA). There is evidence that proves CEA reduces the risk of stroke. The objective of this research project is to determine who is most likely to benefit from CEA surgery.

Study Type

OBSERVATIONAL

Enrollment

Conditions

Carotid Stenosis Hypoperfusion Transient Ischemic Attack

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 30 YearsMax age: 80 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Greater than 30 years of age * Greater than grade 9 education level * Mini-mental state exam (MMSE) greater than 19 for carotid stenosis patients Exclusion Criteria: * History of acute stroke * History of current psychiatric disorder, such as depression or movement disorder * Diagnosed Alzheimer's Disease or dementia

Locations (1)

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Functional MRI (fMRI) results will be used to calculate the activation-related hemodynamic response function (HRF) in patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy, which will be significantly reduced post-operative at 3 months follow-up.

Time frame: Pre-operative, 3 months post-operative

Secondary Outcomes

Dynamic intracranial angiography will be correlated with arterial arrival time (AAT) hemodynamic metric calculated from arterial spin labeling (ASL) perfusion MRI.

Time frame: Pre-operatively, 3 months post-operatively