Brain Scan

[Grandaughter 1]

Hello everyone,

I've not been on for a bit, I'm getting a bit frustrated with the lack of diagnosis for my Grandad.

We were told Grandad had Alzheimers a few months back and he was put on medication. It was increased and freaked my Grandad out so now he refuses to take it.

Because of weaknesses in 1 arm and leg and a tremor, the doc thought he might now have Parkinsons. (I understand there is an illness called Lewy Body but this has never been mentioned.)

Now to top it off, we think my Grandad has been having mini-strokes. He has a funny turn, goes bright red in the face (like he's going to explode), gets really, really hot flushes, then goes grey and falls asleep!

So now they have said it is ok not to take the meds and want to send him for a brain scan. Has anyone else got experience of this. I'm worried about my Grandad having to be still for so long in one of those scanners. Can anyone tell me of their experiences and if anyone recognises any of my Grandads symptons I would be glad to hear from you.

Thank you very much in advance.

Louise

 

[basil]

Hi Louise,

I have had a brain scan myself following a stroke. I am only telling you this in order for you to give grandad as much information as possible about what to expect.

1. The inside of the scanner is quite small, rather like an over-sized crash helmet. The patient cannot see out.
2. The scanner operator can speak to him whilst he is in there, and he can speak to them.
3. They will tell you/him roughly how long it is going to take. Mine took about ten - fifteen minutes.
4. It is a noisy but painless procedure. It sounds like someone is banging on the helmet.

I hope this is helpful information, and that it enables you to reasure him enough to endure it.

I hope the results can help your situation.
Best Regards,
Vic

 

[Grandaughter 1]

Thank you very much Vic. Funnily enough that is my Grandad's name!

The 10-15 minute duration is reassuring. When I looked on the net it mentioned upwards to 1-2 hours! Hopefully Grandad's will be as short as yours was, I think he should be able to handle 15 minutes if he is having a "good" day.

I'm hoping they do find evidence of mini-strokes as awful as that may seem as it seems to be a never-ending list of doctors/appointments at the moment with no proper diagnosis in sight. If they don't find anything we're back to square one again!

Thanks again for the information.

Louise

 

[Stimpfig]

Hello Louise

I think the MRI scans take much longer than the CT scans. I have no experience of MRI scans but have gone through a CT scan myself for a swelling of a lymph node on my neck. I also had a CT scan done for my mum who is suffering from AD. As I was with mum all the while, constantly reassuring her, she made it. However, I didn't like the procedure myself as I tend to feel claustrophobic inside the scanner tunnel. Just had to bear it.

I am not sure if the hospitals will allow this but I insisted on being around with my mum which made it easier for everyone. As far as I know, CT and MRI scans are a great help in diagnosis.

Good Luck !