High Coronary Calcium Score: How do others feel emotionally?

@tim1028 In the 90,s Ihad triple by pass at that time after surgery Dr put me on Aspirin 81mg it acts as a blood thinner to prevent clots Its been 23 yrs now Ive taken the aspirin every night and still here Long before this the Dr told me my calcium level was good so Not to take calcium as you get it done n food greens in particular.You also need magnesium for your heart and other organs .I went through 3heart catheterization,stress test before surgery then echocardiogram none of it is worth worrying about ,anxiety and panicking can do more harm to you emotions play on these. Good luck

Hello. New to group. 58 year old male. My primary Dr. had me take the CT heart scan because my cholesterol was high. Actually my bad was high but my good and triglycerides were very good. In other words, my ratios were excellent. I do eat a lot of dairy up till two days ago. Other than that, I eat pretty well. I've worked out most of my life and keep my weight and waist at high school levels. I'm 5'9" and weigh 157. Father had heart issues including two valve transplants and passed away at 75 when we believe a stent may have dislodged a few days after surgery. Expected to see a score of 0, but shocked to see a score of 510. Also, according to Dr. most of the calcium is in the artery they call the window maker and I've been advised to get a nuclear stress test to pin point it. I went on 10mg of Crestor and a baby aspirin yesterday. Something I said I would never do.
What I'm reading here that is very concerning is that everyone seems to be saying the same thing. That even though they are doing everything possible including exercise (which, by the way, most people in this country rarely do) , diet and statins, it's not changing anything with regard to the calcium score. In fact, it almost seems the opposite. All the scores seemed to have only increased doing the right thing. Has anyone had any positive results at all from the treatment and lifestyle changes? Has anyone actually seen there score at least stay the same? Like everyone else, I feel like a walking time bomb. One more note, blood pressure 105/77. EKG always fine. No symptoms at all. Thanks for your anticipated input.

This is a follow-up post. I have been formulating some questions to ask a cardiologist on an upcoming first consultation visit and would like to see if anyone has any suggestions for additional questions I should ask. In summary, I have NO cardiac risk factors or symptoms, am 70 years old and have a calcium score over 1,600, almost all of it concentrated in two arteries, the right circumflex and the LAD. I had a stress/echo test and the results were normal My PCP started me on 40 mg of Lipitor.I am a life-long exerciser. Here is my current list of questions for the cardiologist:

(1) Is plaque in the coronary arteries representative of the plaque burden throughout the body and brain, putting me at higher risk for stroke?
(2) Current thinking is that the LDL cholesterol should be as low as possible? Should I be taking a higher dose of statin to accomplish that or is the goal to get LDL below 70 and leave it at that?
(3) What do we know for certain based on the the high calcium score and the normal stress/echo test?
(4) Do you recommend any specific supplements to help with heart health, for example ,Vitamin K2?
(5) What is the significance of two coronary arteries having a high calcium score and two coronary arteries at almost zero?
(6) My PCP mentioned that my coronary blood supply may be good, despite the high calcium burden, because of collateral circulation. What does that mean?
(7) How is coronary artery disease monitored and how frequently? EKG? Stress Test? Symptoms?
(8) Should I be taking any other medications other than a statin, for example, a platelet inhibitor?

I am a new member. I recently had a calcium score CT test that resulted in a score of over 1500. I am 69 and am asymptomatic with no risk factors except a low HDL. This test result is a complete surprise and my anxiety index is high and I have no idea what this means for future treatment. I have a stress echocardiogram scheduled next week. What can I expect on the road ahead? I feel a bit like there is a cardiac bomb ticking . Most of the calcium is concentrated in two arteries

Had nuclear stress test last Thurs. Nurse called yesterday results normal. Doctors note on results was keep exercise up and keep weight down. See doc. again in one year continue atorvastatin and lisinopril.

@jimk849 good for you Im going to cardio today for doppler Dr.wants to hear how blood flowing from heart my cholesterol is still high ,since my by pass in 1996 had problems with it.

@jimk849 good for you Im going to cardio today for doppler Dr.wants to hear how blood flowing from heart my cholesterol is still high ,since my by pass in 1996 had problems with it.

Had apt. with cardiologist on Fri. Nov. 2. Told him I have not seen cardiologist since 2010 and wanted to get some idea where I might be today as far as coronary artery plaque might be. He did ekg asked a lot of questions listened to my heart carefully and ordered a nuclear stress test for this coming Thurs. to get updated benchmark. He said I was doing everything right as far as cardio and strength exercise 3 times per week. I have also lost between 25 and 30 lbs since January this year and my bmi is now overweight instead of obese. I actually did a lot of that weight loss because I had a total knee replacement surgery coming up which I had done on June 25th. I don't plan on giving back one lb. of that weight loss. 5ft. 6in. 173 lbs clothes and shoes on is fine with doc as far as weight goes. Fingers crossed. Doc. thought it was good that doing 40 mins cardio getting to 80-85% max. heart rate caused no warning signs.

@botexas. I have to assume that based on what I'm reading from others, mine will be up around 2500 when I'm 75 as well, even if doing everything right. It's great what you're doing. Keep that up but be careful not to injure yourself. That can set you back a bit.
On another note, Had dinner with my father-in-law the other day. He was told he had 95% blockage in one of his arteries about 20 years ago. He was always thin, plays tennis 4 times a week, and he thought he ate well. He decided back then to go totally no fat and for years kept his total daily fat intake to less than 20 grams. He did it for years. When he ended up at the hot dog stand he would order the hot dog with the works, w/o the hot dog, or when the pizza came, he would take the cheese off. Extremely committed. His doctor was shocked to see that he actually reduced his blockage after a couple years. As of today, he still takes a relatively low dose statin, but still plays tennis 4 times a week, still works on his feet as a land surveyer, plays drums in a band, sails his boat, takes classes on just about everything, probably puts 20,000 miles on his van a year, going from one thing to another (still a very good driver), and still as sharp as a tack. One thing he does not do, is sit in front of the TV for any length of time.. By the way...he just turned 94.

@botexas. I have to assume that based on what I'm reading from others, mine will be up around 2500 when I'm 75 as well, even if doing everything right. It's great what you're doing. Keep that up but be careful not to injure yourself. That can set you back a bit.
On another note, Had dinner with my father-in-law the other day. He was told he had 95% blockage in one of his arteries about 20 years ago. He was always thin, plays tennis 4 times a week, and he thought he ate well. He decided back then to go totally no fat and for years kept his total daily fat intake to less than 20 grams. He did it for years. When he ended up at the hot dog stand he would order the hot dog with the works, w/o the hot dog, or when the pizza came, he would take the cheese off. Extremely committed. His doctor was shocked to see that he actually reduced his blockage after a couple years. As of today, he still takes a relatively low dose statin, but still plays tennis 4 times a week, still works on his feet as a land surveyer, plays drums in a band, sails his boat, takes classes on just about everything, probably puts 20,000 miles on his van a year, going from one thing to another (still a very good driver), and still as sharp as a tack. One thing he does not do, is sit in front of the TV for any length of time.. By the way...he just turned 94.