Today, there are few elderly people who suffer from stroke. Stroke, also known as stroke, is a cerebrovascular accident. How to prevent strokes in the elderly and let them live a healthy life in their old age is the concern of every child and a problem that this society should make an effort to solve. It is known that a significant proportion of strokes are caused by carotid stenosis, so how to prevent and treat carotid stenosis, today we will introduce you to carotid stenosis, a common cerebrovascular disease. Etiology of carotid artery stenosis Atherosclerosis is the most important cause of carotid artery stenosis. In general, hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, plus some people’s bad habits such as smoking and alcohol abuse, etc., which may accelerate the occurrence of atherosclerosis. Specifically, lipids in the blood accumulate on the inner wall of the carotid artery, which, over time, leads to hyperplasia and degeneration of the carotid artery lining, ulceration, calcification, and even plaque formation, blocking the carotid artery and causing narrowing of the carotid artery lumen. Symptoms of carotid artery stenosis The narrowing of the carotid artery and the narrowing of the lumen inevitably result in reduced blood flow, which can cause some symptoms of ischemia in the brain. There may be tinnitus, blurred vision, dizziness, headache, memory loss, drowsiness or insomnia, and excessive dreaming. There can also be transient ischemic attacks such as vertigo, black membrane, and in severe cases, episodic fainting gu or even hemiplegia, aphasia, coma, and in a few patients, vision loss, hemianopia, diplopia, or even sudden blindness. Carotid artery stenosis can later cause ischemic manifestations in the eye, such as corneal leukomalacia, cataract, iris atrophy, retinal atrophy or pigmentation, optic disc atrophy, and venous hemorrhage. In addition, if carotid plaque or thrombus is dislodged, it can lead to acute cerebral infarction, which is very scary. Classification of carotid stenosis There are different degrees of carotid stenosis according to the stenosis rate. A stenosis rate of 0-50% is mild stenosis, a stenosis rate of 50%-70% is severe stenosis, a stenosis rate of 70% or more is severe stenosis, and a stenosis rate of 100% is carotid occlusion. Treatment of carotid stenosis Depending on the degree of carotid stenosis, the treatment methods are different. Treatment for carotid stenosis is generally conservative medical treatment and surgical treatment. For mild stenosis, conservative medical treatment is usually used, taking anti-platelet aggregation drugs or statins to control and slow down the carotid plaque, and controlling blood pressure, blood sugar and lipids, and eliminating bad factors such as smoking and alcohol abuse. If the carotid stenosis is moderate to severe, surgical treatment should be considered, depending on the patient’s specific situation, carotid stenting or carotid endarterectomy can be chosen; and if the carotid artery is occluded, only vascular bypass surgery can be done.