After a coronary angiogram

A coronary angiogram is a procedure that lets us see inside your coronary arteries. They are vessels that supply blood to the heart muscle.

The procedure:

• gives us important information about the structure of your heart and how well it is working
• shows if there are any narrowings or blockages

This information explains what to expect after your coronary angiogram and when you leave hospital. 

If you have any questions when you have left hospital, please contact us.

What happens after the procedure

After your coronary angiogram, we look after you in the recovery unit before we transfer you back to the ward. We check and record your pulse and blood pressure during this time.

It is important to tell the healthcare professionals treating you if you feel unwell at any time after the procedure.

If the catheter was inserted into your groin

If the catheter was inserted into your groin during the procedure, a nurse might apply pressure for up to 10 minutes to stop the bleeding. They do this after the catheter and sheath have been removed. It can sometimes be uncomfortable.

The doctor doing the procedure might insert a small surgical plug or use a special stitch to seal the wound. In this case, it would not be necessary to apply pressure to the wound.

We ask you to lie flat until any bleeding has stopped. You may need regular examinations of your groin area. This is likely to include a doctor or nurse touching the area to make sure that there is no evidence of bleeding.

If you are OK, we will ask you to sit up after a few hours. You should then be able to get up and walk around shortly afterwards.

If the catheter was inserted into your arm

If the catheter was inserted into your arm during the procedure, we might put a small pressure cuff around your arm. We can then decrease the pressure gradually over several hours.

A nurse checks if there is any bleeding where the catheter was inserted. You should be able to sit up immediately and might be able to walk around soon afterwards.

Going home

You need to plan how you will get home when you leave hospital.

You need to make sure that you have a responsible adult to accompany you home.

Your follow-up appointments

The doctor gives you the results of your coronary angiogram while it is happening or when you are recovering.

We explain if you need any more treatment or follow-up appointments, and roughly when these will be. Please ask if you are not sure about these matters before you leave hospital.

How to care for the wound to your groin or wrist

It is normal for your groin or wrist to be tender for a few days after the coronary angiogram. It is also common to get a bruise.

If you have a dressing over your wound, this will normally be left in place for 24 to 48 hours and can then be removed.

If your wound starts to bleed, you need to put pressure on the area:

• If your groin was used, keep your leg as straight as possible (lie down if you can).
• If your arm was used, raise your hand across your chest.

If the bleeding does stop within 10 minutes, keep your leg or arm as still as possible for the next hour. If the bleeding starts again, go to A&E but do not drive yourself there for safety reasons.

You can have a shower when you get home but need to avoid rubbing the wound site or having a bath for 5 days.

Do not put creams, talcum powder or soap directly onto the wound site for a week after the coronary angiogram. This helps to:

• avoid irritation
• reduce the chance of infection

Chest pain

Your chest is likely to feel tender after the procedure. This is normal and should settle within a few days. 

If the discomfort continues and is like your angina pain, you can use your glyceryl trinitrate (GTN) medicine as prescribed. This is medicine to treat chest pain by relaxing and widening blood vessels.

Eating and drinking

You can eat and drink as usual after a coronary angiogram but need to avoid alcohol for 24 hours.

It is important to drink plenty of non-alcoholic fluids to clear the contrast agent from your body.

Returning to your usual activities

The time that you need to take off work depends on:

• what type of job you do
• the results of your coronary angiogram

You need to follow the advice from your doctor and nurse. You should be able to self-certify for up to 7 days but should contact a GP if you need a fit note (sick note).

You also need to speak to your doctor about when to start exercising. Again, this depends on the results of your coronary angiogram.

Driving

We recommend that you do not drive for:

• 3 days if this procedure has been done through your wrist
• 5 days if this procedure has been done through your groin
• 1 week if you have recently had a heart attack or had a stent inserted*

*If you have recently had a heart attack, you will need to speak to a doctor or nurse before returning to driving. However, you may be able to resume driving after 1 week.

After these periods, you can start driving again if you feel comfortable and have not had any problems. If you are a bus, lorry or taxi driver, extra restrictions may apply.