My question is whether wearing metal in my mouth during a CT angiogram could cause a significant error in the results.

I'm a 71 year old male, physically and mentally active, and living a healthy lifestyle. I work full time at home as a self-employed writer and virtual world builder. I hike, run trails, mountain bike, and dance in traditional Native American ceremonies.

In 2011, a CT angiogram showed I had an astronomical calcification score of 2271. This came as a shock to me because I've always exercised, have eaten reasonably, and have no cardiac problems in my family other than my mother's stroke at 89. and little I know of in extended family (our susceptibility is instead to cancer).

One reason I question the result is that when I read descriptions of the exam in most hospitals, patients are always told to remove all jewellery and metal. I was not told this. I wasn't wearing jewelry, but I was wearing a denture that's all metal except for the teeth. It's large and heavy.

After getting the results, my cardiologist insisted that a cardiac catheterization needed to be performed, but I was resistant to any invasive procedures. After several weeks of back and forth between us, she very reluctantly consented to perform a exercise stress echocardiogram instead. I passed this test with flying colors. In fact it's the only medical test I've ever enjoyed - I love running!

However my cardiologist said that it did not alter the fact that I have severe arteriosclerosis, as demonstrated by the CT angiogram.

I live a healthy life regardless of it. I exercise regularly, frequently very hard, and I eat healthfully - lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fiber, few processed foods, low saturated fats, salmon 3-4 times every week.

I feel like I have a sword hanging over my head with this arteriosclerosis.

Could my wearing an all metal denture have caused such a high calcification score in my CT angiogram results? Are there any non-invasive, non-radiation tests that could confirm or regute it? With my family susceptibility to cancer, I'm reluctant to expose myself to any more radiation, particularly because I need a lot of dental work and will be getting x-rays there also.

Thank you,

Erik Bainbridge


Medical conditions:
- Mild macular degeneration in one eye
- Taking 6mg Terazosin daily for prostate issues
- Using Flonase for mild allergies
- Peripheral neuropathy in my feet (taking 1200mg Alpha-Lipoic Acid daily for it)
- Arteriosclerosis

Blood pressure: typically 122/78, pulse 58
Heart rate when biking and running: average 125-130, max 145-155
weight 165
Total Cholesterol: 110
Triglycerides: 94
HDL: 43
LDL: 48
Glucose Fasting: 92
PSA: 1.9