Blockage of carotid artery with no intervention till 80% blocked?

Hi @brihug - just wanted to check back with you and see how the watching and waiting time is going after the diagnosis of the occluded left carotid artery? How have your nerves been with this time?

@lisalucier
Thanks for the follow up. My condition is good. My life is basically unchanged. I had a follow up scan (about 6 months later) and things basically the same. I have another in another 6 months. So, I continue to wait until such time as the vascular surgeon says it’s time to do something. I don’t have symptoms related to possible stroke and other vitals are all good. In reading the comments of others, they seem to have the same concerns as I did, but I also see the treatment regiment they describe is also pretty much the same, ie: nothing done about a 100% blocked artery, and surgery on other artery at a greater blockage percentage than I have now. This gives me at least some comfort, as it seems that what can be done, is being done. Thanks again for reaching out.

@brihug - it seems like the watch and wait approach is really tough for a lot of Mayo Clinic Connect members. I think most patients would rather be doing something proactive to ensure that a carotid artery blockage (or any other medical issue identified) is under control.

@tskeane - did you find something that could be done for you 100% blocked carotid artery?

@heidemarie - how are you doing?

Tagging @starfirey2k to see how they are doing with the watch and wait after a blockage was discovered. @davej @predictable @mick2 @jakedduck1 also may have some thoughts to share on waiting till a doctor says it's time to do something.

@lisalucier
I am not thrilled about the “nothing to be done” diagnosis regarding my totally occluded carotid artery. However, until such time as I see someone say that their doctors did or can do something about their totally occluded artery, I really have no other alternative but to follow my doctor’s advice. His explanation as to why nothing is done made sense (in trying to clear the artery, particles can escape and end up in my brain). This, as well as the fact that not a single other person on this site having the same condition being given a different therapy, leads me to believe that the medical consensus is there is nothing to be done. What is actually more troublesome is being told that the remaining artery won’t be fixed until it reaches a certain percent blockage and that this is because of an INSURANCE coverage issue. This in effect prohibits me and my DOCTOR from taking a course of action that perhaps we both would prefer (for example, doing sooner while I am younger and better able to withstand the surgery, or if doing earlier results in a better long term outcome).

@brihug This is exactly what happened, and what was explained to, my well-aged father who was 85 at the time he had an endarterectomy. The vascular surgeon told him his right side was fully occluded, and therefore inoperable. The left still had 10% passage, and she offered to bypass that with a vein stripped from his ankle. My dad opted for MAID three weeks ago, but due to failing health with other problems. He continued to invest on line and did very well, so his cognition did not suffer as a result of the one side being fully shut off. Note that there are other smaller arteries running up the back of the neck that an take up some of the needed flow, in addition to the bypassed left side in my Dad's case. So, while it's a distinct and lamentable bummer to lose one carotid's flow, it isn't an end-game catastrophe.

@gloaming
Thanks for the comment and I hope your Dad continues to do well. His experience reinforces my belief that “what can be done is being done” and to follow the advice of the experts (my vascular surgeon, etc.) and ignore the concerns of friends and others, even though well meaning, who say I should do something more. Thanks again for the comment and best wishes to your Dad for continued health and quality of life.

Today I found that I have 90% blockage in right carotid artery. Tests are scheduled in one week. What can I do to protect myself until treatment is available?

Hi @socapatoy - welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You've just been given a whole lot of information you may or may not have been prepared for about this 90% blockage.

Waiting for tests and treatment is tough. I sense you'd like to get on with it?

Hoping other members here such as @gloaming @brihug @starfirey2k will have input on what they may have done to protect themselves when they became aware of a blockage but were not yet at treatment. @jenniferhunter also may have some thoughts for you.

What did your doctor suggest you do in the meantime while you are still undergoing testing, socapatoy?

@socapatoy
Hello Soca. I found I had 100% blockage of my left carotid artery after having a panoramic X-ray at my dentist’s office. I was sent by my nurse practitioner to a vascular surgeon almost immediately. There was nothing to be done about the blockage (would risk allowing plaque to migrate to my brain). So, in addition to maintaining my statins, the surgeon also had me start to take aspirin (81 mg daily). I asked about changing things in my life (I golf, go to the gym 3 times a week, walk on a treadmill almost daily). He said to continue to do all of those (I was particularly concerned about the gym where I lift weights and use resistance machines). And so I just carry on, getting scans of my left carotid artery every six months to monitor that (it’s something like 50- 60% blocked). When (if?) it’s more seriously blocked (70-80%) then surgical intervention is in order I’m told. My only problem with that is that it’s an insurance thing, not a doctor/patient decision, as maybe I’d do it sooner. But you can’t fight city hall unfortunately. I’d ask the doctor what you can do; not sure what your lifestyle is. But my experience is as described above. Good luck.

@socapatoy I am not experiencing a blocked artery, but I have learned some important lessons about being proactive to manage stress and fear about medical conditions. I needed cervical spine surgery and every time I thought about that, I was driving my blood pressure up a lot. I had to find a way to intercept that fear pathway and I did. I started with deep breathing to relaxing music. Singing can help too because it forces you to have a long exhale and that helps relax you. When you start pairing this with peaceful imagery, your mind can take you away to a safe place anytime you need to de-stress. I also asked myself lots of questions and found the source of my learned fear and essentially deprogrammed it. Stress escalates heath issues a lot. My dad was also a heart patient, and I didn’t want that to become my future and it all started to change when I asked myself why I was doing this to myself.