CT Coronary Angiogram

Your preparation requirements

You will be required to fast from food and drink for 4 hours prior to your appointment. Reception staff will request you arrive 1 hour prior to your examination to ensure appropriate monitoring of your heart rate. Please ensure you have taken the appropriate medication prior to your appointment as prescribed by referring physician.

Please notify your doctor and the staff at Sound Radiology if you have diabetes, renal disease, any allergies or you think you could be pregnant.

What to expect

Upon arrival at the practice, you will be asked to complete a contrast questionnaire and patient consent form and will be advised of the appropriate scan preparation.  This ensures any pre-existing medical conditions, allergies and medications are acknowledged and the appropriate preparation is defined.  If you have any concerns or questions, nursing staff are always available for clarification.

The nursing staff will collect you from the waiting room and escort you to the cardiac lounge.  You will be asked to change into a gown and you may also be asked to remove, all jewellery, reading glasses, mobile phones, wallets etc. The nurse will monitor your blood pressure and heart rate and explain the procedure to you at this point. The nurse will also insert a needle (jelco) in your arm to allow administration of the contrast dye use for the examination. Once the heart rate is at a satisfactory level you will be taken to the imaging room and you will be asked to lie on the CT table for your scan.

Trained staff will explain what will be expected for your study, answering any questions that arise.  You will be connected to an ECG machine to monitor your heart rate throughout the scan. Images are taken as you move through the middle of the CT gantry (doughnut looking component).  You may be expected to hold your breath at differing intervals throughout the imaging examination.

An injection of clear contrast dye is given to highlight certain structures within the heart.  This contrast dye is iodine based, and is administered via a needle (jelco) in your arm.  This contrast dye allows more detail to be seen within the heart ensuring diagnostic confidence.  It is quite common to experience a warm ‘flush’ in response to the injection, along with a ‘funny’ metallic taste and the sensation to go to the toilet.  In addition to this you may be given a spray of GTN (glyceryl trinitrate) under your tongue to ensure optimum visualization of the coronary vessels.

Once all the images are taken, the nurse will ask you to remain on the table and recheck your blood pressure and heart rate while the images are confirmed satisfactory for accurate interpretation.
Once the imaging is complete you are able to dress, however you will remain within the department for another 30minutes before being able to leave.

Please allow 2-3 hours for your examination.

After your procedure

Please be aware, if GTN was administered during the examination, it is quite common to experience headache symptoms for a couple of hours post examination.