Bupa Coronary Health

What tests are included in this assessment?Show all

Heart and lungs

Heart scan Hide

What is it?

This is a CT scan of your heart designed to look for calcium in your coronary arteries. If no calcium is detected your risk of having a heart attack is low. If calcium is present then you may have coronary artery disease, in which case we can recommend ways to minimise your personal risk.

Why do we do this?

A heart scan gives us information about the state of your heart arteries and can indicated more precisely your risk of a heart attack.

Heart disease is the biggest killer of men and women in the developed world. According to the British Heart Foundation it kills over 125,000 people a year in the UK. Forty percent of heart disease is not explained by conventional risk factors and sudden death can be the first symptom in 25 percent of patients.

The radiation dose is equivalent to two to three months of natural background radiation that we are all subject to.

What does the test involve?

A scan is fast, safe, accurate, painless and non-invasive, taking just 15 minutes to perform. You simply lie on a padded table under the arch of the scanner. Your head is not enclosed at any time so there is no feeling of claustrophobia. You will simply be asked to hold your breath a few times while a series of pictures is taken.

Blood pressure and pulse rate measurement Hide

What is it?

The heart pumps blood around the body through a network of blood vessels, carrying oxygen and nutrients to the body. This pumping action produces pressure within the arteries carrying blood away from the heart.

Why do we do this?

Blood pressure tends to rise with age and high blood pressure rarely causes any symptoms. This is why it is important for adults to check it regularly.

A higher than normal blood pressure means that the heart has to work harder to push blood along. Over the long term, hypertension (high blood pressure) is associated with an increased risk of heart attack, stroke and kidney failure.

A healthy blood pressure is 140/85 or lower. If you have diabetes then it is even more important that your blood pressure is lower than this.

What does the test involve?

A compression cuff is inflated around the arm and the reading is taken by the health adviser.

Resting ECG Hide

What is it?

An electrocardiogram measures the "electrical signature" of each heart beat while you are at rest.

What are Health implications?

An abnormal ECG can identify coronary artery disease, an enlarged heart and disturbances in the electrical control of the heart (arrhythmia).

What does the test involve?

You will be hooked up to a 12-lead ECG which "looks" at the heart from 12 different angles. This is recorded on a paper chart that is reviewed by a doctor.

Coronary risk score Hide

What is it?

This score indicates the chance of you having a heart attack within the next 10 years.

Why do we do this?

The development of heart disease depends on a number of risk factors and management and control of these risk factors can decrease your risk of cardiovascular disease.

What does it involve?

The test is calculated by the doctor and is based on a widely accepted algorithm based on your age, sex, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, blood pressure, presence of diabetes and whether you smoke or not.

Body composition

Body mass index calculation Hide

What is it?

Your body mass index (BMI) is one way to find out if you are a healthy weight. It is calculated using an accepted medical formula which involves calculating a ratio of your height to weight and comparing this to an accepted health range.

Why do we do this?

Carrying too much fat is the most common cause of a high BMI. Being overweight is related to health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and some cancers. People with a BMI over 25 are at a higher than average risk of these conditions.

What does it involve?

Measuring your height and weight.

Height and weight measurements Hide

Your height will be measured and you will be weighed.

Additional tests

Cholesterol profile Hide

What is it?

A number of different types of blood fat are measured including cholesterol (HDL and LDL) and triglycerides.

Cholesterol is essential in the body to make cells and hormones. Most blood cholesterol is made in the liver. But some cholesterol comes from foods such as eggs, milk and animal fats.

Triglycerides are a different type of fat. Calories that are consumed and not used immediately are converted to triglycerides and transported to fat cells in the body for storage.

Health implications

A high level of cholesterol increases your risk of cardiovascular disease. Blood cholesterol contributes to the fatty deposits that can narrow and damage coronary arteries, reducing the blood supply to the heart. This can result in angina (chest pain) or in more severe cases, a heart attack.

If your total cholesterol is high you may be advised to eat less saturated fats in your diet and increase the amount of exercise you do. Other treatment may include drug treatments.

A raised level of blood triglycerides together with high LDL can increase the risk of heart disease.

What does the test involve?

The health adviser takes a small amount of blood. The blood is used to carry out a wide range of tests. Results will usually be available on the day for discussion with the doctor.

You are asked to fast before your assessment. The level of triglycerides is very variable depending on the length of your fast. The test is more reliable if you have fasted for at least six hours before your assessment.

Diabetes Hide

What is it?

Diabetes is a condition in which the body is unable to regulate the level of glucose (a type of sugar) in the blood. According to Diabetes UK, it is estimated that 1 million people in the UK have diabetes without their knowing. The test measures the level of blood glucose after fasting for at least six hours.

Diabetes is a significant risk factor for severe eye problems (including blindness), it greatly increases the risk of heart attack, kidney failure and severe arterial disease.

Why do we do this?

A raised glucose level may indicate diabetes. Diabetes can usually be controlled with diet, exercise or medicines, but if poorly controlled, it increases the risk of heart disease and strokes, nerve damage and blindness.

What does it involve?

The health adviser takes a small amount of blood. The blood is used to carry out a wide range of tests. Results should be available on the day for discussion with the doctor.

You are asked to fast before your assessment. The test is more reliable if you have fasted for at least six hours before your assessment.