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Dr. Saks shares what a 64-slice calcium score is and what it tells a doctor about a woman's heart.
Dr. Saks:
The calcium score test is a newer test. It’s a very simple test that we can do. It’s somewhat like an x-ray where the patient lays on a table. It doesn’t involve any needles, but we get a very quick scan of the heart, and we’re looking for calcium buildup in the heart arteries which is basically cholesterol and blood clotting cells that harden and turn into calcium, and normally, the heart should not have any calcium blockage in it, but the machine detects whether there is any calcium buildup, and the more calcium buildup it sees, the higher numerical score it gives the patient.
The normal score should be zero and depending on how much blockage we see, the score becomes 10, 20, 100, 1000, 2000, and the higher it gets, the higher risk of having a heart problem and may need further evaluation.
About Dr. Saks, D.O.:
Dr. Shani S. Saks joined the Arizona Heart Institute in September 2005, following a three-year invasive cardiology fellowship at the Pontiac Osteopathic Hospital in Pontiac, Michigan. Prior to entering medical school, Dr. Saks completed her undergraduate and Master of Science degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan where she graduated Cum Laude. She received her medical degree from Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in East Lansing, Michigan. Dr. Saks continued her medical education by completing an internal medicine residency at the Pontiac Osteopathic Hospital, where she served as Chief Medicine Resident. Dr. Saks is a Certified Internist by the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners. Due to significant and premature heart disease in her own family, Dr. Saks has a strong commitment to patient education, reducing risk of heart disease, preventative medicine and women’s health. Dr. Saks provides services at the Arizona Heart Institute location in central Phoenix.
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