SUFFOLK, Va. — February is the month of love, love for your significant other, for your family, for your friends, even for you. As it is also heart month, it’s a good time to talk about taking care of it. Jen Lewis sat down with her cardiologist, Dr. Dena Krishnan, to discuss just that.
“Really, I think the big things are knowing your risks... Knowing your numbers, that’s your blood pressure, your cholesterol, your blood sugar," said Dr. Krishnan. "Also, just living a heart-healthy lifestyle: staying active, don't smoke, and eat a healthy, well-balanced diet.”
Dr. Krishnan recommends eating the colors of the rainbow, a diet full of fresh fruits and vegetables, fewer fried foods and processed foods. Moderation is key.
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So is staying on top of annual examinations.
“When you go for your yearly well-check with your doctor, they will get bloodwork, which screens your blood count, your kidney function, your liver function, and they obviously check your vital signs," she explained. "So, you’ll know if your blood pressure is too high, if your blood sugar is too high, and that’s how you can get an idea if you have risk factors.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, half of all Americans have risk factors for heart disease. Things like high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking and genetics. For people with a challenging family heart health history, Jen asked Dr. Krishnan about extra screenings or panels they should have done.
“Usually what we would suggest is something called a heart scan, which is a specialized CT scan that basically takes pictures of your heart through a series of images," she explained. "It's going to look at your coronary arteries and try to measure if there is any plaque in these arteries."
The coronary calcium scan looks for calcium deposits in the heart’s arteries. A build-up can narrow the arteries and reduce blood flow to the heart. The test shows coronary artery disease before symptoms arise. It is meant for people ages 40 to 70 who don’t have any obvious heart issues but are concerned, maybe due to heredity.
Dr. Krishnan recommended Jen undergo the scan and described the process.
“It’s really a very painless, easy test," she assured. "It is a specialized CT scan, but it doesn’t have any IV contrast. So, you’re not going to get any injections. They’ll just put some EKG leads on you underneath your shirt and then you go in, underneath the machine. It’s not even terribly enclosed. If you’re someone who’s claustrophobic, it's not scary, you can still see around you. You just take nice, big, deep breaths, they take some pictures and really that’s it. It's over before you know it.”
The whole thing for Jen took about 15 minutes and results are typically back in about a week. Results are numeric with zero being the best. Moderate plaque deposits sit between 100 and 300 and anything over 300 is a sign of more extensive disease.
Dr. Krishnan had Jen’s number.
“We get a score; this is called your coronary calcium score," she explained. "That’s the number that we get with the heart scan, and your number was 14, which is a very good number to have. In general, it means there was very minimal calcified plaque that was able to be detected. It means you don’t need to do anything different, and, in your case, a cholesterol medication is not justified, and aspirin isn’t justified. Overall, your risk for future heart problems is very low.”
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Because of her family history of cardiovascular issues, Jen was relieved and will have another scan in a couple of years to make sure she’s still on track.
Her coronary calcium scan was done through Bon Secours.
If you would like to make an appointment, call 757-398-2391. The cost is $99, and no doctor’s order is needed, but Dr. Krishnan recommends having a physician look at your results to explain them properly and talk about any necessary follow-up steps.
