My Mom has extensive Arteriosclerosis and no risk factors, need advice please!

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

My parents are 78 & 80 y/o. They don't believe in going to the doctor, even when you feel bad, you just get over it. They are both very healthy (or so I thought) Neither takes any meds other than a daily aspirin and multivitamin. I had the opportunity to get them each a Heart View Scan at no cost and it took some doing but talked them into it.

My Dad's came back ok. My Mom's was a different story. >400 calcium level is extremely high and my Mom's level is 1640 and states she has severe extensive arteriosclerosis. My Mom has always exercised, ate healthy, BP always normal, BS always normal, Cholesterol always normal, has never drank, not even carbonated beverages, and never smoked. Her family does have a history of cardiac disease. Her two sisters, her brother, and her mother. Her sister died in her sleep last year in her sleep without any prior symptoms. I'm scared for my Mom. She has agreed to go to a cardiologist. I think she's doing it for my father. They been happily married for 55 years. He still writes her love notes almost everyday. The scan also revealed that she has a cyst in her abdomen.

I would think if it was a mass or tumor it would have said so and not said cyst? It suggested she have an abdominal ultrasound which does sound more like a cyst to me or they would have recommended an abdominal CT don't you think?

Did my Mom develop arteriosclerosis inspite of no risk factors because of her family history? How is it treated? What can I expect. She has had no CP or any symptoms and her mind is still sharp as a tack. This has really thrown me for a loop. Please say a prayer for her. Anybody know of a good cardiologist in Nashville Tenn? Please PM me. Thanks so much.

[suzanne4, RN]

St. Thomas in Nashville has excellent cardiac services. My adopted mother was down there visiting and underwent urgent open heart surgery there. Her daughter is in anesthesia school and was quite impressed with the facility, and the care that her mother received there.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

St. Thomas in Nashville has excellent cardiac services. My adopted mother was down there visiting and underwent urgent open heart surgery there. Her daughter is in anesthesia school and was quite impressed with the facility, and the care that her mother received there.

I have decided either St.Thomas or Centennial Medical Center. I need to know a name of a good cardiologist. We have a group where I work but besides the fact that their personalities suck, I only have confidence in a couple of them. One I don't get along with and the other never explains anything.

[zacarias, ASN, RN]

I don't know about the scan your Mom had done, but a lot of those full body scans are problematic and I sometimes I doubt their usefulness.

Good she's gonna see a cardiologist, a doctor who can accurately assess her status and risk.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

i don't know about the scan your mom had done, but a lot of those full body scans are problematic and i sometimes i doubt their usefulness.

good she's gonna see a cardiologist, a doctor who can accurately assess her status and risk.

http://www.muschealth.com/heart/tour/64ctsmall.htm

we are (or were) the only hospital in the south with the heart view scan and are a training center for cardiologists to come and learn how to interpret. final reading is dictated by dr. *** head of cardiology so i do put alot of weight into this test. they were offered to employees for $25 and i was able to talk them into letting my parents get a scan also because they had no elderly patients to scan for training. they are now scanning anyone with a dr's order. not for free or course, now insurance is entered the mix!

[color=#002382]64-slice ct scanner[color=#002382]

a new, advanced ct scanner at musc is enabling some patients to avoid an invasive cardiac catheterization to diagnose blockage of the coronary artery.

the new somatom sensation 64-slice computerized tomography system, one of the first five in the nation, gives doctors a view of the coronary arteries not previously possible without the more invasive procedure.

musc will be at the forefront of this new technology and will be instrumental in doing comparative studies to determine if the scanner provides just as useful information as catheterization. this superior image clarity helps doctors decide if a patient presenting with chest pains requires medical intervention, treatment with a stent or balloon, or perhaps bypass surgery.

“the day of complete elimination of diagnostic cardiac catheterization is not here yet, but i anticipate that this day will come in the next few years as a result of this new advanced technology.” for the present, the new diagnostic procedure will be performed on low-risk patients and those for whom catheterization poses a higher than normal risk.

musc physicians and researchers plan to use the scanner to follow the results of therapy—whether it is stents, laser or surgery—to see if patients are responding to therapy or having recurrences of the initial blockages. also, lipid-lowering drugs have been shown to decrease plaque in the coronary arteries. this scanner is a means of non-invasively following patients on these drugs to see if the drugs are producing the desired effect.

in addition to providing greater clarity, the new system is more comfortable for the patient. with the older 16-slice ct scanners, patients having their hearts scanned would have to hold their breath for 20 seconds. the 64-slice system scans the heart in only 10 seconds with superior resolution. in addition, for patients with rapid heartbeats, using the older scanner meant having to slow down the heartbeat with drugs. but the most serious limitation of the older scanner is that it only allows visualization of the first two thirds of the coronary artery. as the artery becomes smaller, there is more motion and the image becomes fuzzier. the 64-slice scanner permits visualization of the entire artery.

the speed and high-resolution of the 64-slice system will be especially advantageous for use in children who can be difficult to examine, said radiologist u. joseph schoepf, m.d. “in six seconds we can scan a child’s entire chest and abdomen, looking for congenital deformity of the aorta,” he said. the faster scan means a child would less likely have to be sedated.

another advantage of the 64-slice scanner is in the area of safety, according to schoepf. the machine has an automatic adjustment mechanism that gauges the density of tissue it penetrates and then automatically adjusts to take the image of using a minimal amount of radiation.

[kat911]

Family history has a lot more to do with risk than life style, usually. Look at your mom's family and they are a good guide for cardiac risk and when there will be problems. Remember the marathon runner who always took care of himself and ate right. He was held up to be an example for everyone on how to live and reduce your risk for heart disease. He dropped dead of MI at a fairly young age, family history.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

Thanks Kat for the info. My Mother's mother died from sudden cardiac death at age 78 and her sister also at age 81. Mom is 78. Thank God we had this scan done when we did. My scan turned out good. I have very little calcium in my arteries. Another factor with me is that I have been on a calcium channel blocker for SVT for over 20 years. I don't doubt the doctor will put Mom on a statin drug even though she has a normal cholesterol level. Thanks again for the info.

[zacarias, ASN, RN]

Dutchgirl,

Thanks for the info on your Heart scan super duper CT scan. It looks amazing. I can't wait to see how it affects patient outcomes.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

My Mom called her PCP this morning to make an appointment and they made her one, March 30th. I called the doctor on his cell and he spoke to me at length and thanked me for calling him and letting him know. He said I know how your mother is; she told the girls in the office, "it's no emergency". He has ordered a CT Angiogram for her tomorrow morning and depending on the results will either be seeing her in the office tomorrow or sending her to a cardiologist at St.Thomas. He said perhaps the calcium is primarily located in areas that are not paramount and also is perhaps why she is not having any symptoms. Dr.*** is awesome. All the doctors go to him. He's an awesome diagnostician. I told him he is awesome and thanked him for being such a sweetheart to nervous me.

[SEOBowhntr]

Off Topic, but I just couldn't resist!!!

The Truely Educated Never Graduate...

Is that "T-R-U-E-L-Y????" or "T-R-U-L-Y????"

Dutchgirl,

Many people never realize they have problems until it's too late. I've heard mixed reviews about these scans, but that's another story. Regular check-ups are good because they can catch potentially major problems while they are still minor, remind "Ma" of that. If she is in A-1 shape, just about any sort of Cardiac Intervention should have a high success rate for her. Note that the Total Cholesterol often times isn't nearly important as the Triglycerides, and LDL. I've seen many patients who "didn't have high cholesterol," but had Triglycerides through the roof. Hope everything turns out ok, GOOD LUCK!!!

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

Off Topic, but I just couldn't resist!!! Is that "T-R-U-E-L-Y????" or "T-R-U-L-Y????"

You are correct, it is T-R-U-L-Y. Just emphasizing the fact that the truly educated never graduate (they can't spell). Thanks.

Back on topic: My Mom had her CT Angio this morning. I haven't heard anything from the doctor yet. If I don't hear from him by tomorrow afternoon I will be calling him to remind him. The Heart View Scan also said her heart is enlarged. I didn't even see that until reading it again this morning.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

The CT Angio came back worse than the Heart View Scan. Her doctor called and made an appointment for her tomorrow with a cardiologist. He felt she should be seen soon. Her ejection fraction is 55%, not bad, her right atrium is enlarged, something was dialated, I don't remember, I was upset listening and was in a restaurant. Her vessels and arteries are extensively narrowed due to plaque. She will be scheduled for a Heart Cath. ASAP. I'm assuming she will get stents and be put on Plavix, Coumadin and other meds. I'm almost more worried about the cyst they found in her abdomen. In the CT Angio it shows the cyst as a "small dense area in the liver." I pray this will be a simple hepatic cyst. I know cancer rarely begins in the liver but it is possible. She has been feeling very good and has no health issues and takes no meds. Please pray for my Mom. (Bia) She's 78 y/o and I'm definately not ready to let her go. Please keep her in your prayers and put her on your prayer list if you have one. Thank you everyone. I'll let you know tomorrow what the cardiologist has to say.