Relationship of transient ischemic attacks and angiographically demonstrable lesions of carotid artery.

Eighty-eight percent of arteries in patients with amaurosis fugax or hemispheric transient ischemic attacks had angiographically demonstrable lesions at the carotid bifurcation. Eighty-one percent had stenoses or occlusions at the carotid bifurcation; 7 percent had ulcerative lesions without stenoses at this site. Forty-nine percent of arteries in these patients demonstrated ulcerative lesions with or without stenosis at the carotid bifurcation. There was no significant difference in the incidence or types of ulcerations between those patients with amaurosis fugax and those with hemispheric transient ischemic attacks. Eighty-eight percent of arteries examined in this series were amenable to surgical reconstruction. Amaurosis fugax and hemispheric transient ischemic attacks were of equal value in predicting the possibility of a surgically treatable lesion at the carotid bifurcation.