Are there any options for treating a carotid blockage that are safer than carotid end-arterectomies?

Possibly Stenting: In experienced hands, the surgery should have no more than a 3 to 5 % complication rate. Stenting has been approved for high risk patients, but a recent study has shown that there is not much difference in the risks between the two procedures.

Carotid stenting: Not all carotid blockage requires treatment and you should discuss this with a surgeon that treats this type of disease. In general, you can treat atherosclerosis with medications, carotid endarterectomy, and even endovascular stenting. You would be best served by discussing the best treatment with your doctor.