I had my AAA (abdominal aortic aneurysm) screening done yesterday and was given the all clear which is great. The lady who did the ultrasound told me that, despite all men over 65 in Scotland being invited to be screened, for some reason or other a large number don’t show up. I only found out about this condition comparatively recently as I was chatting to a 66 year old Triumph riding buddy who had been rushed to hospital when his aortic aneurism nearly ruptured. He was told that he was very lucky to have survived and required some major surgery and a lengthy recovery period before he could ride again. The thing is, he had no idea that he had this condition as it’s impossible to detect unless you attend the screening. So - to any Scottish members who have just turned 65, when the letter arrives through the post inviting you to be screened, please accept the invitation and get yourself checked. It’s painless, only takes 5 minutes, you get the result straight away and it could easily save your life.
I’d not heard of this (because I’m young!) but I have checked and AAA screening is offered to men over 65 on the NHS in England too.
Good Thread. had mine done while searching for something else (was on NHS) - there is a dimension criteria isn't there? - but i don't remember it, except mine was well under.
@midlifecrisis great news your all clear I hope you don't mind me altering your title slightly and I have made it a sticky so it s easy to find
I'd never heard of this, so to save you guys time here's an explanation! https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/conditions/abdominal-aortic-aneurysm
The one on the right looks like me after too much beer and a curry. More seriously though, thank you. All this health stuff gets easier when friends share their knowledge.
answering myself, they will inform you before or after the measurement, and it varies slightly with age etc, but generally:- "The size of the aorta decreases with distance from the aortic valve in a tapering fashion. The normal diameter of the ascending aorta has been defined as <2.1 cm/m2 and of the descending aorta as <1.6 cm/m2. The normal diameter of the abdominal aorta is regarded to be less than 3.0 cm."
The test can come with consequences though. If your aorta is above a certain size your driving licence can be revoked until the matter is sorted. The test centre are obliged to report it.
we are all different, but despite this ^ i would still want to find out, if i had symptoms that might be as a result of an enlarged aorta.
So your advice would be - don't get tested as it may reveal that you are at imminent risk of it failing which could affect your legal right to drive.. and you may die.
And the reason you would lose your license is because you may well crash and kill other people if it bursts! Btw 85% of people -typically men- whose AAA bursts, die. You don't get treatment unless they know you have one...
