arlo 0 #1 May 19, 2005 (great for people with family history of strokes/aneurysms) free vascular screening going on at the following locations (you have to call and make an appt): http://www.vascularweb.org/_CONTRIBUTION_PAGES/AVA_Screening/Screening_Sites/Find_A_Screening_Site.html hey, it's free medical. just take the time to make appt for yourself, parents or grandparents. all it take is your time and a drive to the office. Anyone interested in arranging a screening can call 1-877-AVA-2010 . hell, even if you have no use for this, print out the numbers and take it to work. someone may need it...====================== Group Urges More to Check Vascular Health By ALEX DOMINGUEZ, AP BALTIMORE (May 18) - A doctor's group is hoping to persuade more Americans to check on the health of their arteries and veins. While most know heart disease is the leading cause of death among Americans, and many Americans regularly check their blood pressure, less attention is paid to vascular disease. However, most heart disease involves arteries of the heart, and vascular disease can also block arteries to the brain causing strokes, the third leading cause of death in the United States, according to American Vascular Association. To help spread the message, the association is conducting free screenings Friday at more than 200 centers nationwide. The screenings consist of three tests - two sonograms and a comparison of the blood pressure from the arm and ankle. The sonograms can reveal aneurysms, a ballooning of a weakened blood vessel wall, or clogging of the major arteries leading to the brain. A difference in blood pressure readings from the arm and ankle can also indicate problems with blood vessels. The tests are not covered by Medicare or most health insurance plans, and AVA is also supporting legislation in Congress to require Medicare coverage for screening for abdominal aortic aneurisms, one of the three tests, Flinn said. "We think stroke deaths can be significantly reduced in this country and stroke expenditures can be significantly reduced with a well thought-out screening program," said Dr. William Flinn, vice chairman of the AVA and the head of vascular surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a federal panel that makes recommendations about which preventive services should be incorporated routinely into primary medical care, recommends the abdominal screening only for men ages 65 to 75 who have smoked. Women should only have the abdominal screening if they have symptoms, the task force recommends. Between 5 percent and 10 percent of those screened by the AVA through its free screening program are found to have some sort of vascular disease, Flinn said. "And a third to half of them are not receiving what we could consider fairly basic medical therapies that could prevent their problems from getting worse," he continued. Screening is recommend for those over age 55, especially if they have other risk factors, including high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol or are smokers. An estimated 750,000 older men and women in the United States have undiagnosed aneurysms. Nearly 15,000 people die each year from the rupture of an aortic aneurysms, making it the 10th leading cause of death in men over 50. Stroke is also the leading cause of disability in this country with more than $50 billion spent annually on the care of stroke patients, the AVA said. Anyone interested in arranging a screening can call 1-877-AVA-2010 . 05/18/05 20:33 EDT Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
