brainstem compression

[Anonymoose]

Maybe the injury caused by the violent ballooning causes venous spasm? The vein constricts and contact with surrounding nerves and tissues is reduced? Veins do spasm...but I don't know if they spasm in our heads. Also, that spasming wouldn't be so good for blood flow.

Like you say...who knows?!

[Anonymoose]

Haven't watched this yet but it appears to be a 28 minute video of Dr. Arata discussing these ideas:

I just watched the video. While I am excited that some attention is being shifted to the impact of PTA on nerves, I think Dr. Arata might be a little off target. Gotta admire his commitment and passion though!

[Cece]

The idea that venoplasty in the jugulars might impact the vagus nerve was at some point compared to renal denervation. Not understanding the specifics of what renal denervation is, I looked it up.

A small catheter is placed in the femoral artery and we gain access to the nerves through the renal artery. The nerves are embedded in the casings or layers around the renal arteries. We are able to impair or ablate the nerves by passing an energy source into the renal artery and transmitting a low-dose energy, radiofrequency ablation, through the catheter tip that is placed in the kidneys. The energy is transmitted through the vessel wall to damage the renal nerves. http://www.cathlabdigest.com/articles/C ... -Reduction

So, possibly an IR could use a catheter in the jugular vein to gain access to the vagus nerve but there is not any of the RF ablation of the nerve going on in a typical CCSVI procedure. RF catheters have been used in order to attempt to open occluded veins but I haven't heard much about them lately.

Anyway the analogy between the theorized direct stimulation of the vagus nerve during a CCSVI procedure and denervation of the renal nerve during renal denervation is that both would be endovascular procedures affecting nearby nerves.

[Anonymoose]

Yikes! I hope they aren't thinking of taking out the vagus intentionally. That would not be good.