Carotid Screening Helps Florida Woman Reduce Her Stroke Risk

Now that she looks back on the past year, Suzanne Robinson realizes that she wasn't feeling quite well. When she would tilt her head back while putting items on an upper shelf, she would have a dizzy spell. Then in early spring of 2008, she developed double vision.

Suzanne, a 71-year-old retiree, had undergone a Life Line Screening several years before, and thought it was a good time for another appointment, so she visited a screening site in March. The staffers checked her feet for peripheral arterial disease, her abdomen to assess her aorta, and her neck to check the health of her carotid arteries.

The technician became concerned that one of her carotid arteries appeared to be at least 90 percent blocked, she said. The screening staff quickly assembled the results and urged Suzanne to see a doctor immediately. "They wanted to make sure that when I left there I didn't go home — they wanted to make sure I was going to be seen right away." So she took her results to her son, a family medicine doctor, who made an appointment for Suzanne to see a neurologist.

Her left carotid artery indeed was 96 percent blocked, reducing the amount of blood flowing to her brain — and she might have had a stroke within a few months if she hadn't discovered the problem. A surgeon cleaned out the artery and inserted a stent to help hold it open, and also treated another blocked artery in her neck during another procedure.

Several doctors have commented to Suzanne about the usefulness of her visit to Life Line Screening, she says. Her son told her that "Having seen what happened, he would not hesitate to recommend a screening," and her husband's cardiologist said that he hadn't been a believer in this type of service before, but Suzanne's experience changed his mind.

The Fort Myers, Florida, resident knows the damage that artery disease can cause. Both of her grandmothers died of strokes and a brother died of a heart attack at 52. "I've always taken good care of myself, and I think that's a pretty good indication that I should pay attention."

Learn more about carotid artery disease.

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