Angina

[Treeclimber62]

Good morning I has a heart attack 10 years ago resulting in two stents ,everything was fine up to a few weeks ago when I got severe angina resulting in two trips to a@e luckily no heart attack .I'd had a angiogramme and a stress echo the previous year which showed moderate build up of plaque so the consultant based on that decided to send me for a heart MRI which I'm waiting for .my question is if my arteries are fairly clear and ths stress echo came back as negative what could br going on ? Any comments would be appreciated I should add I'm taking isosorbide mononitrate at 20 milligrammes a day which does help but I still get some chest pain and I still work mostly gardening and cutting hedges I'm 67

[Chappychap]

Hello Treeclimber. Congratulations on staying so physically active, I'm sure you've done yourself a power of good with your exertions!

I'm confused by your post, you say, "everything was fine up to a few weeks ago", but then you mention an angio and a stress test last year? They're both serious tests that wouldn't be done without a reason.

Also you mention that the results of these tests was a moderate build up of plaque, but that's not necessarily grounds for concluding that your arteries are fairly clear. The atherosclerosis that you and I both suffer from never stops, All we can do is try and slow its progress as much as we can. It's very common for atherosclerosis to show no symptoms at all, but then suddenly reach a tipping point with angina developing very quickly.

The good news is that you still have plenty of options, ranging from more medication, through further stents, right up to a bypass operation. So after an intervention from your cardiologist there's every chance you can look forward to many more years of active life free from angina symptoms!

[Treeclimber62 in reply to Chappychap]

Thanks for your reply the reason I had a angiogramme is my consultant out of the blue suggested I had one prior to it I was having very slight pain but not even bad enough to use my spray so I was surprised he suggested it and I thought it might give me some peace of mind but in fact it's done the opposite as now they are saying another one would be pointless hence the MRI yes I know I've been lucky 10 years of good health is great and to be honest I'm still pretty good fitness wise I can still work but when it comes to walking up hills I struggle and I live in Wales a lot of hills but thanks for the advice