Trigeminus-evoked Somatosensory Potentials in Patients Undergoing Carotid Surgery

Comparison of Trigeminus-evoked Somatosensory Potentials (TRI-SEP) and Medianus-evoked Somatosensory Potentials (MED-SEP) in Patients Undergoing Carotid Surgery

Hypothesis: Trigeminus-evoked somatosensory potentials (TRI-SEP) may be used as an alternative technique to medianus-evoked somatosensory potentials (MED-SEP) in patients undergoing elective carotid surgery.

For CNS-monitoring somatosensory-evoked responses ba electrical stimulation of the contralateral median nerve are established: A reduction of amplitude and a delay in latency may represent a sensible marker of imminent cerebral ischemia. This study will evaluate a new concept by using trigeminal nerve evoked somatosensory evoked potentials in comparison to the established MED-SEP. Beside the comparison of two methods of neuromonitoring, this study will investigate the neurological long-term outcome (90-day evaluation) with different neuropsychological tests for the detection of cognitive deficits.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Age >= 18 years
• Agreement with study procedure
• Elective carotid surgery

Exclusion Criteria:

• Inability to take somatosensory potentials
• Inability to respond to neuropsychological tests
• Severe preoperative neurological deficit