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I am 84 with 85 percent blockage in right artery,it was same in 1989 and cleaned out.
Vascular surgeon reluctant on surgery,he has ordered a CTscan to get a better idea.
Anyone else been thru this?
It does not affect me,am worried about stroke.
I understand your concern. I wasnt aware of a 98% blockage in my right carotid artery until I had a stroke as a result of it. When the blockage was discovered, I had emergency surgery to clean it out.
The surgeon later told me that he thought the blockage was "only" about 90% and, had he known it was @ 98%, he'd never have done the surgery. Apparently there's a high risk of another stroke during surgery when the blockage is too great.
Is your surgeon is reluctant to do the surgery because of your age or because of the size of the blockage? My mother was diagnosed with a large blockage in one of her carotid arteries when she was 88 and the doctor refused to do surgery because of her age. She lived another 11 years and had only one small stroke that left her a little confused for a few days but no other problems.
Good luck and please let us know the results of the CT scan.
My blockage is 85 percent,was that in 1990 and cleaned out,at that time,went up artery thru groin.I think hie reluctance is age,also I have had triple by pass.
Maybe CT has replaced thru the groin??
What is confusing to me is why he ordered blood test which I googled and it is for urea,garbage in blood indicating kidney failure which I have no trouble with that I know of.They would not do scan without blood test??
I am scheduled for CT scan on7/2017 and will get test results.
I know there are two surgeries to clear the blockage -- one through the neck and the other through the groin. When my carotid artery was cleaned out, they did it through an incision in the neck.
In any event, I hope all goes well with the CT scan. Please come back here to let us know what they find.
I know there are two surgeries to clear the blockage -- one through the neck and the other through the groin. When my carotid artery was cleaned out, they did it through an incision in the neck.
In any event, I hope all goes well with the CT scan. Please come back here to let us know what they find.
Thru the groin was to look at it on screen which was on wall and I observed,then surgery later.
He also mentioned stent which I have read is risky for stroke if any blockeage particle gets loose for stroke.
There are 2 procedures to treat a carotid artery that has plaque buildup in it.
One is an endarterectomy, which is what I had. My surgeon made an incision in my neck to expose the artery, clamped the artery and then opened it lengthwise in the region of the narrowing. He then scraped the fatty plaque out of the artery.
The other method is a carotid angioplasty. A small incision is made in the femoral artery in the groin. A catheter is pushed into the artery and maneuvered up through the aorta into the narrowing in the carotid artery. Then a balloon on the catheter is inflated, mashing the plaque into the artery wall and expanding a stent.
There are 2 procedures to treat a carotid artery that has plaque buildup in it.
One is an endarterectomy, which is what I had. My surgeon made an incision in my neck to expose the artery, clamped the artery and then opened it lengthwise in the region of the narrowing. He then scraped the fatty plaque out of the artery.
The other method is a carotid angioplasty. A small incision is made in the femoral artery in the groin. A catheter is pushed into the artery and maneuvered up through the aorta into the narrowing in the carotid artery. Then a balloon on the catheter is inflated, mashing the plaque into the artery wall and expanding a stent.
I will be finding out on 7/19,will have scan and than see doctor.
They are concerned about kidney's I guess because of age,I was told to fast for 4 hours,urea affects scan.
I did have blood test for creatinine in blood.if I spelled it right.
Kind of interesting,was curious.
What is confusing to me is why he ordered blood test which I googled and it is for urea,garbage in blood indicating kidney failure which I have no trouble with that I know of.They would not do scan without blood test??.
It is normal. They order creatinine/BUN labs before scans because they want to check kidney function ahead of the procedure. The contrast they inject may cause an issue and those who already have some kidney issues are more prone to the side effects. Where I have worked, regardless of age, they always wait for the creatinine/BUN result before the scan.
It is normal. They order creatinine/BUN labs before scans because they want to check kidney function ahead of the procedure. The contrast they inject may cause an issue and those who already have some kidney issues are more prone to the side effects. Where I have worked, regardless of age, they always wait for the creatinine/BUN result before the scan.
Hope everything goes well for you.
This is what I like about forum.
The doctor is on electronic records,got email saying I could view it.When I had blood drawn I was asked if I had eaten anything and I had had breakfast,no check mark for fasting,for scan 4 hours of fasting.I do not know if eating make's my creatinine high 1.28 mg/dl normal 0.70-1.11 rest normal
Thanks again
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