Carotid occlusive disease as a risk factor in major cardiovascular surgery.

Carotid occlusive disease in patients undergoing major cardiovascular surgery raises the question of the perioperative risk factor of stroke. We evaluated 234 cardiovascular patients preoperatively by oculoplethysmography (OPG) to detect hemodynamically severe carotid occlusive disease. The perioperative stroke risk without flow-reducing carotid occlusive disease was 1%, in contrast to a 17% incidence of stroke when OPG studies indicated internal carotid artery stenosis of more than 60%. Oculoplethysmography is a reliable indicator of hemodynamically severe carotid occlusive disease with an associated high risk of stroke that warrants prophylactic carotid endarterectomy before major cardiovascular surgery.