My ultrasound did not reveal significant atherosclerotic plaque/atheroma. What are my next steps?

If your carotid ultrasound did not reveal significant atherosclerotic arterial injury/disease (seen as “plaque,” or atheroma/inflammation in your artery wall), and your arterial age is significantly younger than your chronological age, that provides some peace of mind.

However, there may be disease in your coronary (or other) arteries. The following recommendations become stronger as you get older and if you have other common risk factors like family history of stroke, heart attack, stents or bypass surgery, high cholesterol, diabetes or prediabetes, high blood pressure, smoking or others. It is more important for a 60 year old with Type 2 Diabetes and hyperlipidemia than a 35 year old with few if any risk factors.

The next step in searching for arterial disease is Coronary Artery Calcium Score (CACS). If you’ve already had this test, we would be happy to review your results. Coronary Artery Calcium Score above zero means you have calcified atherosclerotic plaque/atheroma in your coronary arteries. Non calcified or homogeneous plaque/atheroma, which is the stage of plaque evolution that is the greatest risk for an event, is not detected by this test.

If you want a CACS, do an internet search for “Coronary Artery Calcium Score near me” online.  You should be able to find an imaging center or hospital that will offer this without a physician order. Call our office at 217-321-1987 or request a Discovery Zoom Call with Dr. Backs to discuss your results.

Beware: Coronary Artery Calcium Score is offered at a low entry price but typically followed by recommendations for cardiology consultation, stress tests, echocardiograms and the slippery slope to stents and surgery. Before you respond to invitations from the intervention focused cardiology program, schedule a Discovery Zoom Call to discuss your findings and options. The only stent any of my patients have needed was to fix the failure of a stent placed a couple of years earlier with no symptoms and for no evidence based benefit.

Of course, if you have had a stroke, TIA, heart attack, stent or surgery for vascular disease or other manifestation or proof of atherosclerosis/arterial disease, screening test results are not needed to get started. Click here to schedule and start development of your personalized CurePlan, a game plan to put your disease into remission.

What does a CureScreen carotid ultrasound with plaque/atheroma vs. no plaque/atheroma look like?

Click here to see a CureScreen carotid ultrasound with plaque.

Click here to see a CureScreen carotid ultrasound with no plaque.