Angiogram ?

[donnamaria]

Has anyone had an Angiogram to investigate an unexplained brain bleed? It was mentioned at my Neurology appointment today. Should I worry about it or just go ahead if its offered? The risk of stroke concerns me ;-/

[Alibongo60]

Hi donnamaria, I had my first angiogram five years ago, and had brain surgery via an angiogram twice, I didn't find it too bad, I found the worse part was lying flat on my back afterwards for several hours harder, I have an aneurysm, so it was to see if they could reach it in the first instance, then subsequent surgery after. They are the experts and do this every day, they would not be doing it if they thought the risk was too great, have faith in your surgeon, hope all goes well love Alice xx

[donnamaria in reply to Alibongo60]

Thank you, did you stay awake during the procedure? After having had a Crainiotomy im not sure I want to be poked about again . Did you have to take anti seizure medication as a precaution? Im just doing my homework in case I get called in for one. I hope you are well now x

[Alibongo60 in reply to donnamaria]

I was awake for the initial one, it wasn't painful at all, I was hoping I could watch but your under the scanner so can't see anything. I didn't take anti seizure meds, I had to take blood thinners before my first op, unfortunately my aneurysm grew last year and ruptured, so my second op was an emergency procedure, I've recovered well and back at work part time, have the usual problems of short term memory loss, headaches, etc, but feel blessed because I am still here xx

[donnamaria in reply to Alibongo60]

Thank you x

[sardine]

Hello,

I had an angiogram to investigate an aneurysm. I was awake during the procedure, it did not hurt, you just have a weird feeling when they release the dye. But it is not painful. I didn't have to take anti seizure medicines, just had to lie down for a few hours afterward. They do warn you of the risks because i suppose they have to and there are risks but i was told one in 500 procedures go wrong. That is a small percentage and sometimes you don't have the choice. Like Alibongo below says, they do this everyday. Personnally I had faith in the consultant who did mine. Hope this helps you a bit. I know what you mean about being poked about but you're alive. That is the main thing. Take care, and i hope all goes well.

[donnamaria in reply to sardine]

Thank you x

[lcd8]

Hi. Yes I have had lots of angiograms and they really are nothing to worry about. Dye is normally injected into an area around your groin and that the docs watch where it travels on a type of scanner. Sometimes you can taste a slight metallic feeling in your mouth and I guess its best if you keep quite still. But I really wouldn't worry about the risk of stroke. Its just that medical staff have to warn you about anything that can happen like they do when you have an operation. In reality it is probably quite unlikely.

[donnamaria in reply to lcd8]

Thank you x

[GT500]

And now for an honest reply from me.

Before hand you'll be pooping your pants about the side effects despite everyone's reassurances. Take my word for it, it's a waste time. (The worrying not the procedure). I wore the usual very attractive and fashionable bumless gown and despite being male, performed a lovely Marilyn Monroe dress blow as I walked past a waiting room and an outside door opened. It was certainly the highlight of my day.

In the angiogram room it looks like a typical medical style room with a small team of docs etc, they laid me on what I suspect was an ironing board with a nice cover and shoved foam pads under me to stop me rolling off. (I can report that my bum cheeks were clenched the whole time which resulted in cramp and suspicious bruising) The area on the groin was numbed before the smallest incision was made and I mean small to access an artery ( If anyone that performed that procedure is reading this, it was very cold in that room and we'll leave it at that ) You're told to stay very still as they're passing a very thin tube through your artery to your brain to ensure when they inject the iodine the image is clear. You DON'T feel the tube going in or out, it's quite amazing. They then squirted in the dye in three parts of my brain .....the right side just feels oddly warm and lasted maybe 5 seconds or so the left felt the same but with the added bonus my left arm felt funny for about 5 seconds again. Then they did the back of my brain, they did say that it would feel very warm and might make me feel dizzy. I'd say it felt almost hot and I felt like I was passing out in slow motion but again it only lasted 5 seconds or so. Once they've done that, they pull out the tube, which again you WONT feel, then someone will hold the incision for quite a while so that you don't spring a leak. Then comes the worst part, you're wheeled off to a recovery room, told to drink lots but must remain flat for a few hours ( not a piggin clue why).

Overall it's lots of new strange things happening which can be scary, I burst into tears the first time, I was terrified by the side effects. I've had 3 or 4 now.

Be strong and don't trump when they lay you on the ironing board.

[donnamaria in reply to GT500]

Thank you. Ive had 2 CT scans with dye through my arm and its a good job they tell you that you may feel youll wet yourself...... ive had a hot one and a cold one lol x

[malalatete]

healthunlocked.com/headway/...

Here's the link to my description of my first one. Had another 2 since, one to insert a flow diverter device into ICA (whilst anaesthetised) and another to check it was all in the right place and having an impact. Same scenario both times (except for the 1st I was out for the count during....) although I did experience massive headaches following the FDD procedure for about a fortnight. Last angio went swimmingly though. Have a repeat next year, then 2 yearly ad infinitum as long as remaining annie behaves herself. Way I see it, I am at risk of stroke if I have one, and potentially even more at risk if I don't (because my condition needs regular monitoring to check she ain't going to blow). It is a bit Hobsons choice or whatever - but I consider myself lucky to be alive, and lucky to know just how lucky I am to be alive too.

On the 1 in 500 odds, your risk as a human being in the uk of dying next year (simply by virtue of being a human being in the uk) is 1:100 according to the BMJ. So you are more likely to die randomly 'just because' than you are to have a stroke during your angiogram.

After living with a 1 in 5 chance of rupture for 18 months, and now facing a risk that no-one can honestly measure because my circs are (of course -aren't we all...) totally unique I take the view that it's all just pretty random stats. You are hopefully no. 498 and 98 in both the above lists. Fact is you can't change it wherever it is so just go with what you feel you can cope with and what will make you feel most secure and happy.

[donnamaria in reply to malalatete]

Thank you x

[donnamaria]

Thanks everyone. The last 6 months have been quite daunting having to go through the motions of a spontaneous brain bleed. I got to 43, was fit, healthy, never on any medication, no broken bones and here I am today with a huge hole in my head and a piece of Titanium holding my brain in! Lol... I feel reassured that with all your comments and stories that if they offer the Angiogram I will go for it, even my dr said it would be a good idea today. Good wishes to you all how ever far you are in your healing journey. Its so good to read other cases and experiences to help us all through xxxx

[B_S_A]

I know your fears have been allayed but I'll just chime in by saying I've had 6 angiograms and all have gone perfectly! I was asking the guy doing it last time how many times he's done it and he said "over 500". He said about how much training they do to specialise in them so they really know what they're doing!

Best of luck!

Ben