Extracranial-intracranial bypass surgery.

Although the indications and effectiveness of the operation remain controversial, extracranial-intracranial (EC-IC) bypass surgery has become a common method in the treatment of patients with cerebral vascular disease. The technical feasibility of the procedure and its low mortality and morbidity rates are well established. However, its usefulness remains unproven in a variety of clinical, angiographic and regional cerebral blood flow patterns. This discussion focuses on the purpose of EC-IC bypass surgery as well as the procedure itself and postoperative nursing care.