Angiography - Patient
A former-patient has kindly given an account of their experience when they visited the Angiography/Interventional room.
Experience:
Over the last few months I have had increasing pain in my left foot when I try to sleep, my doctor thinks it may be due to narrowing in my arteries and so I have been referred for an angiogram.
I have seen some specialist doctors in the hospital who examined my legs and informed me that I would need an angiogram to show my circulation. I was admitted to a ward, the nurses helped me dress into a hospital gown and I was not allowed to eat or drink for 4 hour before my angiogram. I received an information leaflet explaining what would happen to me and the porters took me down to the X-Ray department.
On arrival in the X-Ray department (Radiology), I was asked about my medical history and what I understood about the procedure by a nurse. Next the X-Ray doctor (Radiologist) who would be performing the angiogram came to see me and explained the procedure and the intended benefits and the risks. I was then invited to ask any questions and sign a consent form. I went into the procedure room and I lay on the X-Ray table, attached to a blood pressure machine and had my pulse taken. Then the radiologist came in after he had scrubbed up and put on a sterile gown and gloves. He examined the pulses in my groin area and cleaned the area with some cold cleaning liquid. I was then covered in green sheets. During this, the nurse was with me and explained each step. A small area of my groin was then frozen with an injection of local anaesthetic, like being at the dentist and a needle was introduced into an artery in my groin. This did not hurt because the area was numb from the local anaesthetic.
The needle was then replaced by a fine wire and then a tube (catheter). A special x-ray dye called contrast medium was injected through this catheter to show my arteries. At the same time the contrast medium was injected the radiographer took a series of digital x-ray pictures which showed my arteries. I felt quite comfortable all this time with the nurse and the radiologist letting me know what was happening. This was repeated several times for different parts of my body. When they had finished the catheter was removed and the radiologist pressed on the hole in the artery with a bandage to prevent bleeding and help the hole close. I was then taken into a recovery area where the nurse checked my blood pressure and pulse as well as my groin for any signs of bruising and after half an hour or so, I returned to the ward.
Duration:
The whole time spent in department lasted about two hours.
Side effects:
The radiologist informed that there may be several side effects from the Contrast medium including a warm feeling, skin rash, feeling sick and very rarely breathing problems. I was also told about lying still for some time so that the hole in the artery could begin to heal itself an keep the risk of bleeding and bruising as low as possible.