Protective effect of the microcatheter placed at the normal vertebral artery in intracranial stent-assisted angioplasty for vertebral artery stenosis: A case report

RATIONALE: A carefully designed intracranial stent-assisted angioplasty (SAA) is presented here that may prevent subsequent branch artery occlusion. PATIENT CONCERNS: A 72-year-old man with a 3-month history of progressive and intermittent vertigo without any obvious trigger, accompanied by nausea. DIAGNOSES: Intracranial atherosclerotic disease. INTERVENTIONS: the patient underwent intracranial SAA in accordance with the procedure described here. OUTCOMES: The patient's paroxysmal vertigo completely subsided, with no complications during the short-term follow-up. LESSONS: This novel intracranial SAA procedure is safe and may reduce the risk of subsequent artery occlusion.