Aortic aneurysm measurements

I went to an emergency room for a heart problem. No big deal. While there my catscan showed a torn aortic artery aneurysm. I forgot to ask him about the but he said that I was being transferred to a trauma hospital because they found a torn aneurysm and I needed emergency surgery. Why? If you say it’s 1.7 cm was I sent from one hospital to another?

So I let them transfer me by ambulance to the trauma hospital. The emergency cardiovascular surgeon said that they acknowledged it but but because it wasn’t bleeding they felt it was safe to discharge me but that I needed to schedule an appointment as it was presently not bleeding. They told me to see my cardiovascular surgeon .
I actually have one.
ASAP they said.
I called my surgeon and he said that he didn’t see anything and was annoyed at my presence without an appointment. I said “ could it burst?” He said that it could and I said “you said you couldn’t see one but it could burst? Wich one is it?
He said not to worry about it and said “ See you next year!”

I’m having a 2nd opinion from my cardiologist who was upset that I hadn’t seen him in 2 years.
He said that it could be a five and you don’t know that you may need surgery. I don’t know what all your abbreviations mean but my own cardiovascular surgeon said it was torn, not bleeding, and it’s only 1.7 cm.
So the hospital transferred me to another hospital because of it and “you’re telling me it’s only 1.7 cm?” I said “I thought you didn’t see anything?” It’s time for a second opinion and I’m getting that in April

Make sure they explain the aneurysm to you. Yes get the second or even a third. You have to understand your situation. A Dr should not get upset about your situation. Hope everything turns out ok.

He retired about 6 months ago thank God. My cardiologist who belongs to a group practice calling themselves "cardiovascular group of New England” is seeing me and even though I blew him off for 2 years is going to look at it because “ how do you know that’s it’s not a 5cm and with a tear in it and being on blood thinners is dangerous. I’m seeing him next week. It could be small or large. I just want to know.

Not knowing is the worst. My last measurement was 4.3 and I would much prefer getting a scan every 6 months instead of 12-14 months. I honestly wish they would just fix it.

CT scans carry a lot of radiation. I doubt insurance would cover MRI's every 6 months. Usually aortic aneurysms are slow growing. An echocardiogram might be covered every 6 months, carries no radiation and provides much the same info. Just recognize that the scan and the echo measure the size differently -- one straight across and the other on a slant so compare apples to apples when evaluating the result. I can't remember which measures which way.

My aneurysm was diagnosed at 3.8 in 2007. It is 4.2or 4.3 now. I'm 79 so I expect to die of something other than the aneurysm although if it looks like I am headed to a nursing home, I intend to start lifting heavy weights to blow the aneurysm. I'm really not kidding.

I wish you good luck.

Donna

My cardiologist talked about how you get different measurements based on the angle of the echo. I restore cars and the limit on what I can lift, push or pull has really slowed me down. I used to cut and split all of my firewood, can’t do that anymore either. I just turned 60 and was hoping for at least another 20 years. Both parents died in their late 80’s so I thought another 20 would be reasonable. Since the discovery of the aneurysm I’ve been diagnosed with hairy cell leukemia also. I’ve come to the conclusion that life is a crapshoot. I wish you had options other than going to a nursing home. My parents both died at home while still active.

I just ran across your post about your echocardiogram results. Were you able to figure it out? Hopefully with a visit to your cardiologist?

My husband and I are committed to staying at home until the end. It is likely that the first of us to go will have that luxury but the one remaining might not be so lucky. What will be will be. I'm happy we are both still here, both mobile, both able to go to the gym, able to care for ourselves. Some are not so lucky.

Thank you for your good wishes.

Not really. I stick what was in the echo
Most people say the number but not which are, if the root, gradient or whatever.
Anyway thank you for asking.
Seeing my cardiologist in November and will ask then.

I asked ChatGPT to give some common abbreviations used in an echocardiogram of the heart. It says:

Abbreviations commonly used on an echocardiogram report of the heart include:
LA: Left Atrium
RA: Right Atrium
LV: Left Ventricle
RV: Right Ventricle
IVS: Interventricular Septum
IVC: Inferior Vena Cava
Ao: Aorta
AV: Atrioventricular
MV: Mitral Valve
TV: Tricuspid Valve
PV: Pulmonary Valve
EF: Ejection Fraction
FS: Fractional Shortening
E/A Ratio: Ratio of early (E) to late (A) ventricular filling velocities
DT: Deceleration Time (related to mitral inflow pattern)
IVRT: Isovolumic Relaxation Time
PW Doppler: Pulsed-Wave Doppler
CW Doppler: Continuous-Wave Doppler
TR: Tricuspid Regurgitation
MR: Mitral Regurgitation
AS: Aortic Stenosis
AR: Aortic Regurgitation
PS: Pulmonary Stenosis
PR: Pulmonary Regurgitation
TEE: Transesophageal Echocardiogram

Here's what it says about Ao PG:

In an echocardiogram report, "Ao PG" typically refers to the pressure gradient across the aortic valve. Here's what each part of the abbreviation stands for:

Ao: Aorta
PG: Pressure Gradient
The pressure gradient across the aortic valve is an important parameter measured during an echocardiogram to assess the severity of aortic valve stenosis (narrowing). It represents the difference in pressure between the left ventricle (LV) and the aorta during systole (when the heart is contracting).

Aortic stenosis leads to increased resistance to blood flow from the LV into the aorta during systole. The pressure gradient across the aortic valve is calculated based on the velocity of blood flow measured using Doppler ultrasound. A higher pressure gradient typically indicates more severe narrowing of the aortic valve, which can have implications for treatment decisions and prognosis.

I know that ChatGPT can be very unreliable. Yet, this may be a starting point to find out whether the abbreviations it gives are correct.