Vertebrobasilar Circulatory Disorders

An area of expanded treatment within the Vascular Surgery Section relates to patients afflicted with vertebrobasilar or global cerebral ischemia, which is often the consequence of vertebral artery disease. Patients may have vertebrobasilar symptoms related to head motion when their vertebral arterial inflow is compressed externally by bony elements from the cervical spine. Other patients may have brain stem infarctions from ulcerated plaques or dissections in the vertebral arteries. The outcomes of brain stem infarction are 3 times more lethal than those occurring in the hemispheres.

Dr. Ramon Berguer, who pioneered the surgical procedures to reconstruct the vertebral artery in patients with symptoms of vertebral artery disease, is a member of the Vascular Surgery team. He has developed new techniques for the surgical reconstruction of the vertebral artery at different levels, from the base of the neck to its entrance into the skull. Berguer also developed new surgical techniques for the reconstruction of complex carotid disease and of the branches of the aortic arch.

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