UPDATE: I recently went to see a vascular physician at Mayo, and he showed me an echocardiogram that was done exactly one year ago at Mayo! If I had known that, I wouldn't have been complaining so much about lack of attention from a cardiologist.
I guess it's on patient info that Mayo has, but which are not all available on our personal patient portals.
He said that my aortic aneurysm looked okay, that there had been no recent enlargement of it, and that I should be checked again in one year.
So, that is nice to hear. But what I am trying to do is learn more about my situation, so that I don't have to rely on cardiologists to interpret my echocardiogram results. Just before seeing this vascular physician at Mayo, I had called the Olmsted Medical Center, which I've never been to, and they said that if I wanted to see a primary care physician there, then the OMC primary care physician would determine if I could have my heart "checked" over there.
I told them that sometime between now and this time next year I'll call them back if I need help.
This is really good news - I didn't think Mayo would leave you out there alone without a good reason.
You wrote, "But what I am trying to do is learn more about my situation, so that I don't have to rely on cardiologists to interpret my echocardiogram results" - and I chuckled. I have a thyroid nodule that has been "watched" for over 20 years, and at times the endocrinologist is in no hurry to get back to me to explain the results, even though I can see the test & radiology report on my portal. So, a few years ago, I asked the same question - and she laughed at me. She asked if I would like to do a 3 month "radiology rotation" as part of my medical residency - that's what she had to do to learn how to interpret the scans & images.
Just something to ponder - I for one will just try to learn a little patience.
Sue