Private ct

[Anonym01]

Had nhs ct, doctor saying mild stenosis.Increased statin, monitor blood pressure and diabetes. Is it worth getting private ct as I have chest pain every day and feel I am one sneeze away from a heart attack.

[wattsy1985]

The NHS CT will be no different from the private CT scan as these are normally done in the same hospitals, private scans just push you in front of the queue, I guess, really your concern is related to the feedback you've received? then maybe you could consider seeing a private consultant? although a lot of the private consultants are already NHS consultants again your paying to push yourself to the front, I'm very fortunate that i get health care through work, the NHS have not once mentioned sending me for a CT scan however had one done privately which found an underlining issue. If you are willing to spend the money then go for it as it will offer a peace of mind I guess but it isn't cheap, I believe my CT scan would have cost me £1500 if I didn't have the health care plan

[Anonym01 in reply to wattsy1985]

Thank you for your reply

[Class52 in reply to wattsy1985]

I followed the advice re cayenne pepper. Wish I hadn’t gave me violent diarrhoea and still not properly back to normal after about six weeks. To be fair I don’t normally eat hot foods and will certainly avoid anything that has cayenne pepper in it in the future. You can google it and all seems fine but are the comments correct !!

[Milkfairy Heart Star]

It is possible to have angina without blocked coronary arteries, known as angina non obstructive coronary arteries, ANOCA.

The lack of blood supply to the heart is caused by the blood vessels not working properly, microvascular dysfunction or coronary vasospasms.

I suggest you keep a log of your symptoms and discuss your findings with your GP. Perhaps ask whether microvascular angina or vasospastic angina maybe causing your chest pain.

The BHF ' Understanding Angina ' booklet has some more information about the different types of angina.

bhf.org.uk/informationsuppo...

bhf.org.uk/informationsuppo...

[Anonym01 in reply to Milkfairy]

Thank you for your reply

[Heart2025]

I had heart ct scan recently and my score was huge 1200 but after camera into heart no stents required but I have done some research online and am now taking natural supplemenrs to help with blood thinning and blood flow and you can DM me if you want more details but start with organic cayenne pepper work up to ½ teaspoon in water 3 times a day for improved heart health Look it up esp. on Facebook groups like - cayenne pepper all day

[HUModerator Administrator in reply to Heart2025]

Hi Heart2025, we would always ask that members of the community avoid giving advice on medication or other lifestyle changes, for more detail on this please take a look at the BHF’s community guidelines: healthunlocked.com/bhf/post...

[Oldbikeman]

NHS are getting much better at providing second opinions - it's worth going back to them and stressing that your anxiety is impacting your quality of life (I'm reading between the lines there, but that's what I' hearing from you.)

Good luck

[Minogue]

hello . I believe you can ask for a second opinion . I would ask gp for second opinion . Chest pains could be caused by many things . I’d get it checked out .

[Saladay]

No real point in having another Ct. Not an expert but I’d suggest pushing for a ‘next level’ test - either a stress echocardiogram (which is ultrasound, so non invasive) or an angiogram (NB this carries a 1% risk of stroke or heart attack - which most docs won’t bother to tell you!). I believe the NICE guideline would suggest further testing for you as you are symptomatic. Have a look at those and then go back to your doctor. BTW are you on low dose aspirin. I would have thought you should be (unless there’s a contraindication)?

[Sonny657]

Is it a cardiologist who told you you had mild stenosis, or just a doctor? And mild stenosis of what, the coronary arteries? Was it a standard CT scan, or a CT angiogram? These things are important. Also, may I ask how old you are?

[Eglatine]

If cardiology has signed you off as okay, I would definitely start by going back to your GP and asking what the pain is caused by.

You could also ask for a private referral to a cardiologist who will probably also arrange other tests, if you think your problem could be Microvascular, maybe find one who at least has heard about it.

Don’t accept that everything is okay until either they have established the cause of the pain (which may be not cardiac related), or the pain has gone away.

And keep taking the statins.

Hope this all gets sorted for you.

[HopAddict]

I had an NHS CT scan following a clear angiogram but was going to have to wait weeks for a response from the NHS cardiologist. I asked for the CT scan results to be sent to a private clinic. This was done in days. Had a video call with the private consultant a few days later. This was very reassuring and stopped the worry from not knowing. The consultation was about £300. I used OneHeart clinic in London. When I didn't know how long I was going to have to wait for the NHS CT scan I was quoted £3,500 to have it done privately.

[HopAddict in reply to HopAddict]

Just realised I had a Cardiac MRI not a CT scan. All the other information is correct.

[Scho1 in reply to HopAddict]

I recently paid £2000 for a cardiac CT angiogram with calcium score but only to speed things along and it was with my new cardiologist. In my case it was well worth paying for as it completely changed my diagnosis from my previous cardiology team who said I had coronary artery disease and heart failure without any scans to I actually have a moderate sized hole in my heart, a calcium score of nil and no coronary artery disease.

I’m now on a totally different pathway and a second opinion was worth it.

[Saladay in reply to Scho1]

Agree. Always worth having a second opinion - they are a complete shower. I once had one consultant tell me I had a specific diagnosis which would have involved surgery and lots of downstream care for the rest of my life, but the second opinion showed the first consultant's work was completely erroneous. They might be nice, earnest, apparently learned etc., but the fact is you cannot trust the clinical judgement of one individual whoever they are.

[Scho1 in reply to Saladay]

Unfortunately you are right. I have been on a cocktail of meds that is found to have caused damage to my kidneys and liver. Thankfully now they have been stopped but I now need the note of having coronary artery disease removing from my medical records as this is untrue.

[MoretonCross]

Always remember, your gp is not a cardiologist. Never be afraid to ask for a referral to someone who is.

[Expostie]

Hi Try Vista Health for a private scan depending on were you live you may have to travel however all set prices.

Good luck

[Taviterry]

Be aware of "consultation" fees on top of that for the scan. I had an ECG at a private hospital that cost £450 (way above the average, I learnt afterwards) plus £100 for "interpretation" and £160 for the consultant. The NHS ECG I had in January was far more thorough (as well as being far closer to home).

The other factor is exchange and sharing of medical records. The private consultant wanted to know one particular NHS blood test result, which he couldn't access and which I had to send him after I got home.(His interpretation of it was wrong, as it happened.) And several private and NHS consultants have been unable to see (or sometimes find) the others' documentation on my medical record. In one case a gastroenterologist at a private hospital was unable to access my NHS records despite his also working at the NHS hospital that had contributed to them!

[Richie34]

Mild stenosis, where though? I'm no cardiologist but mild is just that and rarely a cause for any concern as long as it doesn't progress to 'moderate' by healthy dietary choices, lifestyle choices such as regular moderate exercise, stress reduction (if appropriate). Can't comment on whether or not to obtain a private CT personally I wouldn't enquire further just accept the diagnosis of this CT results and follow the advice given.

[Newstart3]

Just a thought thinking outside the box here ... is it worth paying for a private GP appointment ... in the NHS the average time for an appointment is 10 mins whereas a private GP appointment can be 30 mins or even 60 mins. Whilst I don't know your medical history, chest pain may well be coming from the heart but there could be a different explanation. Having time to explore this with a GP might identify other explanations. This might help to establish whether a different type of scan may be more useful. You could then have the scan privately or you might prefer to see your own regular GP to ask for the referral for a scan on the NHS. In my case whilst I do have some cardiovascular issues, I experienced breathlessness and other symptoms which were assumed to be my heart but turned out to be a serious condition completely unrelated to my heart. Wish I'd known sooner. Not sure if this helps?

[Mollie223]

Just to give another point of view I was told after my nhs ct scan that my stenosis was normal for my age . I was given the normal meds and sent away. I paid to see a private cardiologist which was £200 and he reviewed the nhs scan and referred me for a private ct scan. The results of this showed triple vessel disease with the LAD severe stenosis . I went back to nhs with the private ct scan which resulted in a angiogram and 2 stents.If I had listened to the first nhs consultant and not had the private scan I would probably not be here.I must say that the second nhs cardiologist who did the angiogram and stents was marvellous . My heart rate was also very high for the nhs scan so maybe the image was not clear enough - for the private one the cardiologist prescribed medication to slow my heart rate down before the scan. In my case the private ct was worth every penny about £800 2 years ago and it also showed another health issue . It also stopped me expecting to have a heart attack any moment as I knew something was not right. Good luck whatever you decide.

[Anonym01 in reply to Mollie223]

Than you for sharing