Radiation-induced carotid artery disease.

Nine patients with atherosclerotic carotid artery disease associated with neck radiation were compared to 40 control patients. The data suggest that significant differences in age, incidence of coronary and peripheral vascular disease, elevated lipids and serum cholesterol, and the angiographic incidence of disseminated atherosclerosis justify the description of radiation-induced carotid disease as a clinical entity. Elevated serum cholesterol and hyperlipidemia may contribute to the development of radiation-induced vascular disease. Successful surgical reconstruction does not appear to be influenced by the prior radiotherapy, although periarterial fibrosis and increased difficulty in separating the plaques from the vascular media was encountered.