Vertebral basilar insufficiency: diagnosis and treatment.

While VBI is less well known than carotid artery disease, there exists a group of patients with symptomatic ischemic disease of the posterior cerebral circulation. Primary consideration in the evaluation of these patients must be the elimination of a systemic illness as the cause of symptoms. Once this is accomplished, definitive diagnosis is made by angiography and either medical or surgical intervention may be instituted. Nurses must understand the nature of the disease process in order to be an active participant in the patient's care and recovery.