Think You Have Arterial Blockage? 5 At-Home Checks for Plaque

While

a blockage of your arteries may not cause any visible symptoms for a long time, a reduction in blood flow can lead to tightness in your chest, breathlessness, and even dizziness, even as the symptoms get worse. According to doctors, this condition is known as atherosclerosis, which significantly increases your chances of experiencing heart attacks, strokes, and developing various kinds of life-threatening heart diseases. And so, it is highly important to detect this condition before it turns fatal. While there are many ways you can undergo medical tests – which include angiograms and ultrasounds – you can also check your heart health through some basic methods at home. A few of these include:

Regularly checking blood pressure

High blood pressure or hypertension is one of the most significant factors that causes arterial plaque formation, resulting in plaque accumulation in your arteries. According to doctors, a healthy blood pressure range is usually less than 120/80 mm Hg. But it can vary depending on your age, gender, weight, medications you’re taking, and your overall health. However, plaque accumulation in your arteries causes the arteries to narrow, which forces your heart to work harder, thus increasing your blood pressure levels. Daily use of a home blood pressure monitor enables you to track your blood pressure levels.

Monitor your heart rate

Measuring your heart rate tells you how hard your heart is working. To measure your pulse easily at home, you can place your two fingers on your wrist and count how many beats you feel in a minute. According to doctors, a healthy resting heart rate is usually between 60 and 100 beats per minute. If your heart rhythm sounds abnormal with a fast or slow heart rate, make sure to see a doctor immediately, as it may be an indication of heart disease.

Ankle-Brachial Index test

The Ankle-Brachial Index or ABI is a non-invasive test that helps compare your blood pressure in your ankles to the blood pressure in your arms to screen for peripheral artery disease. For this, you need to place blood pressure cuffs on the arms and ankles and use a Doppler ultrasound device to measure the systolic pressure at each site. The doctor would then calculate the ABI by dividing your ankle pressure by your arm pressure reading. The normal range for ABI scores should be between 1.0 and 1.4. The ABI score indicates reduced blood flow through arteries, which, when it falls below 0.9, might be caused by arterial blockages from plaque buildup. Scores above 1.4 could indicate hardened arteries.

Staircase climb test

A staircase climb test indicates heart health, with results suggesting good heart function if you can climb about four flights of stairs, which means around 60 steps in just 90 seconds. If it takes you more than that time, it can be a case of suboptimal heart health, which means you must see a doctor immediately. To do the test, find a four-flight staircase, climb at a brisk, steady pace without stopping, and time yourself. This simple test can help flag potential problems, but it is not a substitute for professional medical diagnosis or treatment.

Home ECG devices

While the home ECG devices may not directly test for blocked arteries - as they primarily record the heart's electrical activity, they can detect certain abnormalities related to a heart attack, like irregular heartbeats or changes in the ECG waveform- they cannot visualize the blood vessels themselves. A diagnosis of a blocked artery requires specialized imaging, such as an angiogram.