Improvement of visual function after balloon angioplasty for innominate artery stenosis: a case report

Occlusive disease of the innominate artery is relatively rare, but visual disturbance is a frequently encountered manifestation of this disease. A 48-year-old man presented with a I-year history of right amaurosis fugaxs. During the nine years prior to admission, the patient had undergone aortic artery-coronal artery bypass surgery two times. Upon ophthalmological examination, the patient was found to have impaired right retinal sensitivity and prolonged right arm-to-retina circulation time. Aortic arch angiography demonstrated severe stenosis of the innominate artery near its origin. The stenosis was successfully treated by balloon angioplasty. Subsequently, right retinal sensitivity improved and right arm-to-retina circulation time normalized following the procedure. These findings indicate that this patient had sufferred impaired visual function due to hemodynamic retinal ischemia caused by innominate artery stenosis.