Ask a doctor on the topic of Internal medicine

carotid artery

February 6, 2016 | 15,00 EUR | answered by Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

Hello,

I was touched by the story in the media where a 34-year-old woman had a stroke due to a tear in her carotid artery. She apparently had an accident.

Sometimes I have to do exercises for positional vertigo, like these for example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZgUx9G0uEs

Could something happen to the carotid artery due to the strong hyperextension of the head? I also do exercises for my shoulders and neck almost daily. Pulling the neck to the chest, massaging the short neck muscles. Could anything happen there? I have had my carotid arteries scanned twice so far, the last time was a year ago and everything was fine.

Then I have another question, rarely when I hold my head in a strange way, or sleep oddly, I get brief episodes of vertigo. I have only been to the doctor once, who said it wasn't serious, possibly just tension. Can tension negatively affect the vertebral artery or carotid artery to the point of causing a stroke? Or is there more to it? The brief episodes of vertigo sometimes scare me.

Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

Hello,

The carotid artery is extremely elastic, and it takes a congenital aneurysm (which has been ruled out by Doppler) or a severe accident to cause damage or even a stroke. Physical exercises or neck massages cannot do that.

All the best!

Sincerely, Dr. Höllering