All men registered at the practice with a date of birth between 01.04.1954 – 31.03.1955 are invited to the NHS funded National Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) Screening programme. The aim is to reduce deaths in men aged 65 and over by detecting AAA’s early and offering appropriate monitoring or treatment. An estimated 80,000 men in England and Wales are effected by the condition, which is caused when the main blood vessel in the abdomen – the aorta – weakens and starts to expand. If undetected, the condition can be fatal. Men who have AAA will not normally notice any symptoms, which is why screening is so important.
The test is simple, non-invasive and usually takes less than 10 minutes.
Men over the age of 65 years who have not already been screened are welcome to have a scan. All you need to do is to have your current NHS number to hand (the practice is happy to provide you this info, if you do not know it) and then ring the local AAA Screening Office on 0161 291 5716. Transgender individuals (male to female, or female to male) are also eligible for screening. Trans woman will have the same risk as a man and should consider accessing screening.