Carotid bruit are discovered incidentally in an otherwise asymptomatic patient. The presence of a carotid bruit alone does not necessarily indicate the presence of stenosis, and the physical examination cannot be used to estimate the degree of stenosis, if present; therefore, any bruit must be evaluated by ultrasound or imaging. Bruit is traditionally pronounced "broot", rhyming with "boot", although the etymologically accurate pronunciation "bru´e" or "bru-e´" is common in North American medical parlance. In addition, while "bruit" and "murmur" are technically synonymous, the term "bruit" is generally reserved for arterial sounds in North America. Carotid bruit A carotid bruit is a vascular
Carotid sinus blood vessels. The aortic arch baroreceptors are innervated by the aortic nerve (Nerve of Cyon), which combines with CN X (vagus nerve) and travels to the NTS. It is a sensitive site of the body because stimulation can drive large-scale reflex effects throughout the body. This can be used therapeutically in treatment of resistant hypertension by baroreflex activation. Physical assault at this point, producing massive baroreflex activation can cause dramatic falls in blood pressure and cerebral ischemia. The carotid sinus often has atherosclerotic plaques because of disturbed hemodynamics (low wall shear stress, flow reversal/recirculation). Since these plaques, if large and