664 Factors and Outcomes Associated with Delays in Carotid Endarterectomy in Symptomatic Patients

Carotid artery disease (CAD) contributes to 20% of ischaemic stroke. Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) reduces stroke risk significantly if performed within 14 days of the index event in symptomatic patients. Studies report delayed CEA is common in practice, however underlying reasons are poorly understood. The aim is to assess factors associated with delayed CEA, and to compare outcomes between timely and delayed CEA. Method This retrospective cohort study included 24 symptomatic CAD patients planned for CEA between October 2018 and December 2019 in a tertiary vascular unit. Time from index event to CEA was measured in “timely” (≤14 days) and “delayed” (>14 days) cohorts and causes for delay were explored. Univariate logistic regression was performed to assess factors associated with delay. Surgical outcomes at 30-days and 1-year were compared between cohorts. Results Overall, 58.3% (n = 14/24) patients underwent delayed CEA. Median time from index event to CEA was 10.5 (IQR 7.5-12) and 22 (IQR 16-32) days in timely and delayed cohorts respectively (P < 0.0001). The main cause of delay was deterioration in patient condition (50%, n = 7/14). In 35.7% (n = 5/14) reasons were unclear. No statistically significant factors were associated with a delay. All surgical outcomes, including 30-day mortality (0%, n = 0/10 vs 7.1%, n = 1/14;P>0.9999) and all-stroke (0%, n = 0/10 vs 14.3%, n = 2/14;P=0.4928), were not statistically significant between timely and delayed cohorts respectively. Conclusions A substantial proportion of patients undergo delayed CEA, with inconclusive associated factors. Those undergoing a delayed CEA did not comparatively have an adverse outcome, but numbers in our study were limited. A larger scale study with increased power is required.