Intracranial Athlerosclerotic Disease (ICAD)

Intracranial atherosclerotic disease accounts for 8-10% of all ischemic strokes in the United States . Approximately 70,000 Americans suffer an ICAD related stroke each year. Until recently, the only approved treatment option was medical management. The WASID (Warfarin vs. Aspirin for Symptomatic Intracranial Disease) study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2005, showed that statistically, warfarin was no more effective in preventing stroke than aspirin, and warfarin can cause more hemorrhages. In addition, patients with a = 70% stenosis and who are on meds are at high risk (23%) for a recurrent stroke after one year.

There is now an alternative for treating these high-risk patients. In August 2005, the FDA approved a device called the Wingspan TM Stent System to treat ICAD. Designed for the brain's fragile vessels, the Wingspan Stent System is a system that enables appropriately trained and experienced physicians to reach and open narrowed arteries in very deep parts of brain.

The endovascular physicians at the Neurologic & Orthopedic Hospital of Chicago , Doctors Grobelny and Lopes, are highly experienced with this technique and can offer this advanced care.