Carotid endarterectomy(CEA)has been proved to be an effective surgery to treat the cerebral ischemia caused by carotid atherosclerotic stenosis. However,there is still no effective mean for the early diagnosis of the CEA-related severe complications such as stroke and death. Many studies have explored the potential biomarkers for stroke alert,although there is still a long way to go for their actual application in clinical settings. The carotid atherosclerotic stenosis,the perioperative complications of CEA,and the stroke share similar pathogenic mechanisms,and some biomarkers such as S100B,matrix metalloproteinase 9,asymmetric dimethylarginine,and neuron-specific enolase have been studied in the clinical trails of CEA. This article summarizes recent advances in this field.