Treatment of symptomatic complex posterior circulation cerebral artery stenosis with balloon-mounted stents: technique feasibility and outcome

This study aimed to retrospectively analyze a series of patients with complex posterior circulation stenosis who underwent stent-assisted angioplasty to evaluate the feasibility of the procedure and summarize the experience with regard to complications. A total of 16 consecutive patients with 27 complex posterior circulation artery stenoses refractory to medical therapy were enrolled. Technical success rate, periprocedural complication, and long-term follow-up result were evaluated. The study population included 16 patients with 27 lesions. A total of 36 stents were successfully implanted. The technical success rate was 100%, and the overall periprocedural complication rate was 12.5% (2/16). During a median of 25.5 months of follow-up, three patients presented recurrent transient ischemic attacks, which were confirmed had restenosis more than 50% by control angiography or transcranial Doppler. Stent-assisted angioplasty is a feasible treatment method for complex posterior circulation artery stenosis. However, it appears to be associated with a relatively high periprocedural complication rate. Therefore, strict periprocedural management to reduce mortality and morbidity is needed.