On a Wednesday afternoon, Barbara Wellock, a Redding resident, was carpooling home with a friend after volunteering at a local elementary school, when in a flash her eyesight drastically changed. Suddenly, things were not as they appeared before, “The white lines on the side of the road seemed to travel across the intersection. Instead of a straight line, it seemed to zigzag. It was from then on I began having double-vision,” Barbara said.
Barbara would later discover that she experienced a stroke to the muscle of her eye referred to as “Sixth Nerve Palsy”. Barbara underwent surgery to correct the problem.
After surgery, her eyesight was back as it had been prior to the stroke but her peace of mind was not. It was then Barbara learned of Mercy Medical Center Redding’s (MMCR) Vascular Highway Screening and thought this might hold the answers to her questions. “Would she experience another stroke?” “Would her vision leave her once again?” “Was another surgery imminent?” The process would take approximately one hour on a Saturday afternoon, consist of three exams, and conclude with a one-on-one consultation with a Vascular Specialist. “But what exactly is the vascular system and how can a screening detect the possibility of having another stroke?” Barbara wondered.
Dr. Bruce Miller, Medical Director of MMCR’s Cardiology Department, who has participated in past vascular screenings and educational events said, “The vascular system consists of many branching vessels that provide oxygen and nutrients to every crucial organ in our bodies. A screening can check for possible blockages in the carotid arteries that can result in stroke, as well as scan for an enlarged aorta that can result in a potentially life threatening aneurysm. A screening also looks for blockages in the leg arteries which cause peripheral arterial disease or PAD.”
MMCR’s Lead Registered Vascular Technologist Michael Lemos performs the examinations. “The first exam is the Ankle-Brachial Index or ABI and it takes five to 10 minutes to perform. The ABI checks the blood pressure in the arms and ankles letting us know if there are any blockages in the arteries,” Michael said. The Stroke/Carotid Artery Ultrasound is the second exam that is performed. “This is an ultrasound taken on the neck. The ultrasound will tell us how well the blood is flowing through the arteries to the brain. There is no pain involved and the ultrasound is performed by using sound waves, not radiation,” Michael said. The final exam is the Abdominal Aortic Ultrasound, which is an ultrasound that looks at the aorta in the abdomen to detect possible aneurysm.
To prepare for the screening, patients need to do just a few simple things to get ready:
- Wear comfortable clothing, no turtlenecks
- Be prepared to remove your shoes and socks
- Do not eat after midnight if your appointment is in the morning hours If you have a screening scheduled for the afternoon, a light breakfast is recommended
“Each time we do the screening we find someone that didn’t know they had a potential problem, and we are able to prevent possible amputation, stroke or even sudden death.” Michael said. Fortunately, Barbara was not one of these patients, and the news she received put her at ease, “They did find some plaque in my arteries but nothing serious. It is nice to know I am not at high risk for another stroke. It’s important to me because I want to continue to be able to live independently and enjoy doing the things I love, like spending time with my family,” she said.
Who should consider a screening? “Discovering carotid disease, aortic aneurysm, and PAD affecting the lower extremities can have significant impact on life and limb even if the screening only identifies a problem that needs to be monitored. In the early stages of disease these problems can only be detected by screening exams. A screening should be considered for anyone more than 50 years of age, or earlier if you smoke or have a history of smoking, if you have diabetes, hypertension, elevated cholesterol, or a family history of PAD or aneurysm,” said Dr. Douglas G. Hatter, M.D.
