THE IMPACT OF ADVANCED AGE ON THE RESULTS CAROTID ENDARTERECTOMY - ANOUTCOME ANALYSIS

BACKGROUND: This study examined whether advanced age adversely influen ces the outcome of carotid endarterectomy. STUDY DESIGN: The records o f 173 patients who underwent 187 carotid endarterectomies performed by the author from January 1990 through December 1995 were retrospective ly reviewed. Group 1 included 58 patients, ranging in age from 75 to 9 2 years (mean, 79.4 years), who underwent 63 procedures, and group 2 i ncluded 115 patients, ranging in age from 41 to 74 years (mean, 66.3 y ears), who underwent 124 procedures. The operation was performed for s ymptomatic disease in 67 percent of the cases in each group. The opera ted lesion was more than 80 percent stenotic in 85 percent of the grou p 1 and 79 percent of the group 2 cases, RESULTS: No significant diffe rences were found in the operative mortality (1.6 percent compared wit h 1.6 percent), incidence of perioperative stroke (4.8 percent compare d with 1.6 percent), or rate of major cardiac complications (7.9 perce nt compared with 7.3 percent) between groups 1 and 2. No significant d ifference was found in the mean postoperative length of hospital stay between the group 1 and group 2 patients (4.13+/-2.58 days compared wi th 3.68+/-1.40 days), However, during the last 2 years of the study, t he mean postoperative length of stay among the group 2 patients (3.06/-1.44 days) was significantly shorter than among the group 1 patients (4.15+/-1.45 days) (p<.05). CONCLUSIONS: Advanced age does not advers ely affect the results of carotid endarterectomy. However, the very el derly may be expected to experience a longer postoperative length of s tay because of associated comorbid conditions.