I had a CT angiogram for heart this week. Compared to a regular angiogram or catheterization , the CT angiogram can be considered a noninvasive procedure. However, in your dad's case the CT angiogram may also be considered risky because of kidney problems. His kidneys may not be able to deal with the dye used for CT angiogram. I am not a doctor so here I am just giving advice based on my on experience.
You could ask for a ct angiogram if you are worried, which is basically a non invasive scan.
However, to answer your questions, the angiogram is very safe as far as invasive procedures go. The biggest risks are stroke and heart attack, but for this to happen the cardiologist would basically have to disturb a chunk of blockage material in the arteries with his catheter wire.
It isn't really about odds, are you the likely or unlikely odd?
Hello, I went to the neurologist yesterday and he ordered a CT angiogram. He called me today and advised the ct varified that I have a 3mm anuerysm. He scheduled me for an angiogram in 2 weeks. He told me that he and his co-workers will review the results and give me my options. He advised they could recommend that we only watch it and do nothing unless there are changes or we could go as far as surgery to fix the problem.
The tenative diagnosis is BACNS, but they are not sure. I have not yet had a brain biopsy or a ct angiogram. I have been put on steriods and verapamil and have had no attacks in a month or so. I have been experiencing some slight numbness in my extremities ( random) and some light headaches/ dizziness from time to time. I am wondering if this is normal or I should be running to the doctor.
What am I looking at as far as the prognosis ?
Also, I live in Knoxville, Tenn.
A specialist injects dye into the arteries, which creates a map of your arteries and the aneurysm on xrays. CT can reveal blood flow in your brain and show aneurysm location. Sometimes a dye may be injected into a vein to highlight blood flow in your arteries and veins, CT angiogram and provide additional detail regarding appearance of brain aneurysm. MRI can create detailed images of your brain and show aneurysm’s location. Hope this helps. Take care.
An echo
Non-intervention angiogram CT scan 64/128/256 slice is almost as good and maybe better than the intervention of a cath angiogram. For a successful CT test the heartrate should be below 60 beats and the patient should be able to hold there breath for 20 seconds or so...also an obese patient is not a very good candidate for obvious reasons. More inclusive than a cath as it includes the anatomy of the vessels, respiratory system, the aorta (ascending, arch, and descending.
but the Dr said that to ABSOLUTELY rule out ANY other heart problem he could do the CT angiogram for the sole purpose of feeling comfortable putting me on a stronger heart regulating medicine (instead of the beta blocker) and by do so enabling me to go OFF the blood thinner. It may be the perfect echo that prevented the approval. I just found out from a voice mail yesterday, so I will find out more about the reason. Thank you so much!
Correlates to the amount of plaque deposit in the arteries....get more information from your doctor on what it means for you!
You see the blood flowing, you see the heart pumping and you see the reactions of the arteries. With the ct angio all I saw was a set of still pictures. The other thing to consider is that they may spot a blockage. You would then have to go through an angioplasty anyway, meaning even more radiation.
Yes, CT scan 128 slice angiogram does provide a score that indicates the degree of soft plaque within each coronary artery and the total score. There has been some analysis of the score and MI's and the evaluation provides a risk calculation on a yearly basis. My score (over 1000) indicates a risk of a 20% event within a year.
Your medication should help prevent any progression and help prevent any rupture.
It showed the complete anatomy of the heart vessels that included any soft plaque within the lining of the vessel. The ct software scored the soft plaque and evaluated the risk of a rupture. It also discloses any hard plaque within the lumen (vessel channel).
The cath views the lumen for plaque, and has the ability to determine gradient pressures of chambers and vessels...The cath can also be equiped with ultra sound to view the anatomy of the vessel.
There must have been some kind of vessel weakness/damage for it to bleed.
Perhaps your best plan would be to keep your blood pressure in the normal range, or better still, low normal. Any other vessels heading for the same problem would have a much greater chance to recover. Maybe a reason they didn't intervene is that the bleed was too too deep in the brain and the artery was too small for stenting etc ?
Hi,
There are chances of repeated TIAs and Strokes. Please go for a CT scan immediately to know the cause of headache. It may be a blood clot. Please consult a cardiologist and neurologist as soon as possible to go through all the investigations like Computerized tomography(CT scan), MRI scan, MRA (magnetic resonance angiogram), Computerized tomography with angiography, Conventional angiogram, Carotid Doppler ultrasound, Heart tests and Blood tests to detect inflammation of the arteries.
The CT scan 64 slice is not the state-of-art for CAD detection. The CT scan 256 slice 3D images is very good as the images provide a view as if actually seeing the source. The 3D CCG differs from CT as it measures blood velocity to determine fault that may or may not be due to blockage but another cause. A cath angiogram has the advantage if there is blockage, the blockage can be stented at the time, and it is not painful at all!.
It is the vulnerable soft plaque between the layers of the vessel that is of principle interest and scored by a CT scan. Hard calcified plaque within the lumen presents the risk for ischemia (occluded vessel(s). That is what I was told by the doctor reviewing my CT score and supported by all sources I have read.
From hard copy source!: "Depending upon their composition, plaques can be classified into two types.
1.
m worried if they actually do find something, then they have to radiate me again to do the angiogram. My cardiologist wanted me to go the route of the angiogram first rather than CT because he didn't want me exposed to high doses of radiation, and because if something was found, they could fix it right away.
Still super apprehensive. I feel like I want more information, but I don't want to waste any more time either.
But first check with your health insurance carrier. Mine was willing to cover the angiogram but not the CTA. I opted to pay for the CTA out of my own pocket ($900).
You mentioned you had a stress test. Was an echocardiogram involved? If you haven't had one, I would opt for that first. If you have, the next step is a nuclear stress test (same as the echo treadmill stress test except imaging the heart using readioactive dyes is used).
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