Galway Clinic, Doughiska — Mon to Fri, 9am to 5pm
+353 (85) 129 514115 minutes that can save your life
A quick, accurate and completely painless ultrasound check of the arteries that matter most — carried out at the Galway Clinic by Prof Sherif Sultan's vascular team.
To help reduce cardiovascular death and disability in Ireland, Prof Sultan established a vascular screening programme in the vascular laboratory, pioneering combined testing for cardiovascular disease. Of the patients screened to date, roughly one in four has had a significant finding — almost all of them without any symptoms at all.
Each year the unit screens around 1,000 people. From those, about 350 procedures follow: roughly 65 to prevent a stroke, 90 to repair an aneurysm and 140 to prevent an amputation.
Vascular screening is covered by most Irish health insurance plans once you have a referral letter from your GP. A GP referral is required before an appointment can be booked — you can still send the request form first and we will tell you exactly what your GP needs to send. Please check the details of your own policy with your insurer.
Each year in Ireland more people die from cardiovascular disease, including heart disease and stroke, than from all cancers combined — over a third of all deaths. In most cases it is silent until it causes a heart attack, a stroke, a lost limb or a ruptured aneurysm.
Around 5,200 people die each year in Ireland from smoking-related disease. Smoking damages the artery wall, raises blood pressure and is the single biggest avoidable cause of aortic aneurysm.
Screening is especially important if aneurysm, stroke or peripheral arterial disease runs in your family. Four out of five adults over 45 have raised cholesterol, and two thirds of those cases go untreated.
Between 30 and 40 per cent of people in Ireland have high blood pressure, and many do not know it. It scars the artery wall, accelerates plaque and raises the risk of both stroke and aneurysm.
Around 200,000 people in Ireland have diabetes, and half are unaware of it. Diabetes at least doubles the risk of heart attack and stroke, and brings it forward by years.
As many as one in ten Irish people have some degree of chronic kidney disease, which is closely linked with accelerated cardiovascular disease.
Watch
Two short films from the original website explain how early vascular checks can protect health and quality of life.
A trained vascular scientist performs a painless ultrasound scan of your aorta, the arteries in your neck and the circulation in your legs. Nothing is injected, nothing is uncomfortable, and you stay fully clothed apart from lifting your shirt for the abdominal scan. The scan itself takes about 15 minutes.
About 15 minutes for the scan. Allow around 45 minutes in total for arrival, the scan and a short discussion of your results.
No. Ultrasound uses sound waves, not radiation or needles. You will feel only the warm gel and the probe resting on your skin.
In most cases you are given your results on the day, in person. If anything needs further attention, a consultant is on hand to explain what it means and what happens next.
Anyone over 55, and anyone at any age with a family history of aneurysm, stroke or peripheral arterial disease, a history of smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes or kidney disease.
Most Irish health insurance plans cover non-invasive vascular testing when you have a referral letter from your GP. Please check your own policy with your insurer before your appointment.
Yes. A referral letter from your GP is required before an appointment can be booked, and your insurer will normally ask for it too. You can still send us the request form first — we will contact you and explain exactly what your GP needs to send.
At the Galway Clinic, Doughiska, Co. Galway — a private hospital on the eastern edge of Galway city. Paid on-site parking is available.
For the abdominal aorta scan it helps to avoid a heavy meal beforehand, but no fasting or medication change is required. Continue all your usual medicines.
Most findings are managed with lifestyle advice, medication and a repeat scan. If treatment is needed, Prof Sultan and his team can care for you in the same unit, with keyhole options for most conditions.
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