Abstract
We evaluated the efficacy of superficial temporal to middle cerebral artery (STA-MCA) bypass based on data obtained from Doppler sonography (DS) of the ophthalmic artery (OA) . [Materials and methods] Thirty-three cases of internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion were examined. DS examination was performed before surgery, at 1 month after bypass, and during the follow-up period. [Results] 1) The abnormal DS findings were divided into two patterns : a stenosis pattern (SP; 9 cases) and a reversed flow pattern (RP; 24 cases) . 2) DS of the OA at 1 month after bypass among RP cases showed normograde flow in 2 cases and a decrease of reversed flow in 16. During the follow-up period, improvement of reversed flow (including normograde flow) could be seen in most of the patients who had RP preoperatively. 3) Angiographic findings in the ophthalmic artery were well correlated with the DS finding in the OA, not only in the preoperative, but also in the postoperative stage. [Conclusion] DS of the OA can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of STA-MCA bypass by comparing the OA findings before and after bypass. STA-MCA bypass brings about an improvement in retrograde OA flow.
