The incidence of carotid endarterectomy is increasing, despite the controversy surrounding prophylatic surgery. In the United States, there is an increasing emphasis on controlling the cost of care. Throughout the world, and particulary in Europe, promising new endovascular therapies are being developed and implemented.

This book represents the current opinions of some of the foremost vascular specialists in Europe and the United States. It examines a remarkably broad and richly relevant range of topics - standardized reporting, ethical and legal aspects of innovative treatment, new imaging procedures, new trends in surgery, updates on prospective studies, and all aspects of percutaneous techniques.

Although definitive answers to the major questions in carotid artery disease may not be forthcoming for years, the issues and insights that elicited by this volume are detailed and significant, both in a practical sense and in terms of their potential to guide future research.