AzTrials
AzTrials

Carotid Artery StenosisCEANCT00597883

Neuropsychometric Outcome After Carotid Endarterectomy

An observational study of Carotid Artery Stenosis and Carotid Artery Disease, run by Columbia University at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

The purpose of this study is to determine how well patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy will perform on a battery of tests to assess brain function before and after surgery as compared to a control group of patients undergoing spine surgery. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
What is being tested?
Carotid endarterectomy and Neurological and neuropsychological evaluations
Type of treatment
Surgery or procedure
How many people
817 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Mar 2003to Oct 2014
Phase
Observational
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Study population: Columbia University/NY Presbyterian Hospital

Who may be able to join

  • ability to speak English
  • undergoing carotid endarterectomy procedure
  • undergoing lumbar laminectomy procedure

Who cannot join

  • history of permanent neurological impairment
  • Axis I psychiatric diagnosis or drug abuse

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • Columbia University, Department of Anesthesiology

    New York, New York, 10032

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Neurologic and Neuropsychometric Outcome in Patients Undergoing Carotid Endarterectomy

The purpose of this study is to determine how well patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy will perform on a battery of tests to assess brain function before and after surgery as compared to a control group of patients undergoing spine surgery. This study will serve to: (a) determine incidence of neurologic/neuropsychometric change in patients undergoing carotid artery surgery, and (b) to ascertain the time it takes for these changes to resolve.

Read the detailed description

Cerebral injury will be determined in four ways. First, all patients will be evaluated using a battery of neuropsychometric tests before and after surgery. Patients admitted to the Irving Clinical Research Center (CRC) will have their tests one day before, one day after surgery and at 1 month. Those coming into the hospital on the day of surgery, "Same Day", will be evaluated on the day of surgery, one day after and at the 1 month follow up. Preoperative neurological and neuropsychological evaluation will be performed. The neuropsychometric tests are not intended to be diagnostic of specific neuropsychiatric disorders, but rather are designed to demonstrate general neuropsychological pathology. These tests can be divided into four types: (1) an evaluation of language, (2) an evaluation of speed of mental processing, (3) an evaluation of ability to learn using a list of words, and (4) an evaluation of visual perception requiring a patient to copy a complex figure. Before the battery is administered we will assess each patient's level of pain while sitting and standing using a 10 point Visual Analog Scale and then gauge their mood with a series called the Wong/Baker Faces Rating scale.

We will be measuring Quality of Life (QOL) in all enrolled patients. This will be done using two well-known examinations (Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status (TICS) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Health-Related Quality of Life 14 Item Measure (CDC HRQOL14)) and a series of questions investigating how well patients are able to perform activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs). These tests will be given at two time points, once before the surgery and then one month after surgery. We will look for changes in quality of life that may correlate with neuropsychometric test performance.

Peripheral serum samples will be drawn before induction, before cross-clamping the carotid artery, 15 minutes after cross-clamping the carotid artery and 24 hours after surgery. These samples will be analyzed for four different sets of markers of cerebral injury, one gene and two markers of systemic inflammation. Serum levels of neuron specific enolase (NSE) and protein S100B, a neuronal enzyme and glial cell component respectively, markers of cell injury will demonstrate cerebral injury

Patients will undergo intraoperative TCD (Transcranial Doppler) The TCD examination will assess the brain's ability to increase cerebral blood flow in response to a pharmacological challenge (CO2 inhalation). TCD measures the degree of cerebral vasodilation, identified as an increase in flow velocity on TCD. This "cerebrovascular reserve" we hypothesize will be able to predict performance on postoperative neuropsychometric tests

Being tested
Carotid endarterectomy, Neurological and neuropsychological evaluations
Keywords
carotid endarterectomy, Neuropsychological tests, Stroke, Transient ischemia
Medical subject headings
Carotid Stenosis, Carotid Artery Diseases, Ischemic Attack, Transient, Stroke

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Carotid endarterectomyProcedure or surgery

    (non-experimental) carotid endarterectomy (CEA) for treatment of carotid artery stenosis

  • Neurological and neuropsychological evaluationsOther

    Clinical examinations consisting of a neurological and neuropsychological evaluation

Study groups in NCT00597883
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Patients having CEAPatients undergoing carotid endarterectomy (CEA) for treatment of carotid artery stenosis will receive neurological and neuropsychological evaluations
Receives: Procedure: Carotid endarterectomy; Other: Neurological and neuropsychological evaluations

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Percentage of Patients Having a Significant Change in Neuropsychometric Performance After Carotid Endarterectomy

    Neuropsychometric performance change is measured in Z-scores by compared to a reference group of elderly patients > 60 years having "simple" spine surgery. The Z-scores were generated as follows. The mean and standard deviation (SD) of the change scores (neurocognitive performance after surgery minus neurocogntivie performance before surgery [baseline]) was calculated for the reference group of patients. The mean and SD from the reference group was used to generate Z-scores: The mean change score from the reference group of patients was subtracted from the change scores in for each CEA patient for each test and divided by the SD of the change scores of the reference group of patients.

    Measured: Baseline to Day 1

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted18 Jan 2008 (estimated)
  2. Study startMar 2003
  3. Primary completionOct 2014
  4. Study completionOct 2014

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Observational model
Case-control
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrolment
817 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00597883
Sponsor's protocol ID
AAAA4811
Acronym
CEA
Status last verified
Nov 2025
First submitted
9 Jan 2008
Last updated
21 Nov 2025
Data monitoring committee
No

Publications

  • Parsson HN, Lord RS, Scott K, Zemack G. Maintaining carotid flow by shunting during carotid endarterectomy diminishes the inflammatory response mediating ischaemic brain injury. Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg. 2000 Feb;19(2):124-30. doi: 10.1053/ejvs.1999.0954.

    PubMed 10727360
  • Jaranyi Z, Szekely M, Bobek I, Galfy I, Geller L, Selmeci L. Impairment of blood-brain barrier integrity during carotid surgery as assessed by serum S-100B protein concentrations. Clin Chem Lab Med. 2003 Oct;41(10):1320-2. doi: 10.1515/CCLM.2003.201.

    PubMed 14580159
  • Hetzel A, Braune S, Guschlbauer B, Dohms K. CO2 reactivity testing without blood pressure monitoring? Stroke. 1999 Feb;30(2):398-401. doi: 10.1161/01.str.30.2.398.

    PubMed 9933278
  • Valdueza JM, Draganski B, Hoffmann O, Dirnagl U, Einhaupl KM. Analysis of CO2 vasomotor reactivity and vessel diameter changes by simultaneous venous and arterial Doppler recordings. Stroke. 1999 Jan;30(1):81-6. doi: 10.1161/01.str.30.1.81.

    PubMed 9880393
  • Heyer EJ, Adams DC, Solomon RA, Todd GJ, Quest DO, McMahon DJ, Steneck SD, Choudhri TF, Connolly ES. Neuropsychometric changes in patients after carotid endarterectomy. Stroke. 1998 Jun;29(6):1110-5. doi: 10.1161/01.str.29.6.1110.

    PubMed 9626280
  • Heyer EJ, Mergeche JL, Bruce SS, Connolly ES. Inflammation and cognitive dysfunction in type 2 diabetic carotid endarterectomy patients. Diabetes Care. 2013 Oct;36(10):3283-6. doi: 10.2337/dc12-2507. Epub 2013 Jun 4.

    PubMed 23735728
  • Heyer EJ, Mergeche JL, Ward JT, Malone HR, Kellner C, Bruce SS, Connolly ES. Phosphodiesterase 4D single-nucleotide polymorphism 83 and cognitive dysfunction in carotid endarterectomy patients. Neurosurgery. 2013 Nov;73(5):791-6; discussion 796. doi: 10.1227/NEU.0000000000000085.

    PubMed 23863764
  • Heyer EJ, Mergeche JL, Bruce SS, Ward JT, Stern Y, Anastasian ZH, Quest DO, Solomon RA, Todd GJ, Benvenisty AI, McKinsey JF, Nowygrod R, Morrissey NJ, Connolly ES. Statins reduce neurologic injury in asymptomatic carotid endarterectomy patients. Stroke. 2013 Apr;44(4):1150-2. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.111.000362. Epub 2013 Feb 12.

    PubMed 23404722
  • Heyer EJ, Kellner CP, Malone HR, Bruce SS, Mergeche JL, Ward JT, Connolly ES Jr. Complement polymorphisms and cognitive dysfunction after carotid endarterectomy. J Neurosurg. 2013 Sep;119(3):648-54. doi: 10.3171/2013.4.JNS1368. Epub 2013 May 10.

    PubMed 23662819
  • Heyer EJ, Mergeche JL, Wang S, Gaudet JG, Connolly ES. Impact of Cognitive Dysfunction on Survival in Patients With and Without Statin Use Following Carotid Endarterectomy. Neurosurgery. 2015 Dec;77(6):880-7. doi: 10.1227/NEU.0000000000000904.

    PubMed 26308635
  • Sussman ES, Kellner CP, Mergeche JL, Bruce SS, McDowell MM, Heyer EJ, Connolly ES. Radiographic absence of the posterior communicating arteries and the prediction of cognitive dysfunction after carotid endarterectomy. J Neurosurg. 2014 Sep;121(3):593-8. doi: 10.3171/2014.5.JNS131736. Epub 2014 Jul 4.

    PubMed 24995780
  • Halazun HJ, Mergeche JL, Mallon KA, Connolly ES, Heyer EJ. Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio as a predictor of cognitive dysfunction in carotid endarterectomy patients. J Vasc Surg. 2014 Mar;59(3):768-73. doi: 10.1016/j.jvs.2013.08.095.

    PubMed 24571940
  • Heyer EJ, Mergeche JL, Connolly ES Jr. Middle cerebral artery pulsatility index and cognitive improvement after carotid endarterectomy for symptomatic stenosis. J Neurosurg. 2014 Jan;120(1):126-31. doi: 10.3171/2013.8.JNS13931. Epub 2013 Sep 6.

    PubMed 24010976

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Carotid Artery Stenosis and Carotid Artery Disease, run by Columbia University at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 2 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 21 Nov 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 3 Dec 2024). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Percentage of Patients Having a Significant Change in Neuropsychometric Performance After Carotid Endarterectomy (time frame: Baseline to Day 1). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00597883, which also lists 13 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 21 Nov 2025.

Free account

Log in to keep searching

You’ve used your 3 free searches. AzTrials is free: log in or create a free account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in