Vascular · Carotid

Carotid Screening and Stroke Risk — Who Should Be Scanned?

A carotid scan is genuinely valuable for some people and of little use to most. Here is the honest division — including why we will talk some people out of booking.

Stroke symptoms are a 999 call — every time

Sudden face drooping, arm weakness or slurred speech means call 999 immediately. This applies even if the symptoms pass within minutes: a transient episode is a warning that a major stroke may follow within days, and it needs urgent NHS assessment the same day. Never book a private scan for symptoms that have just happened — that delay is the thing most likely to cause harm.

Blood pressure cuff and stethoscope beside an ultrasound machine in a clinic room

The carotid arteries in your neck carry blood to the brain. Fatty plaque can narrow them, and a narrowed carotid is one cause of stroke — though far from the only one. A carotid Doppler scan measures how narrow the artery is and how fast blood is moving through it.

Who Benefits

Who a carotid scan is actually for

Situation Is a carotid scan useful?
You have just had stroke or transient symptoms Yes — urgently, through the NHS. Same-day assessment, not a booked private scan
Established cardiovascular disease, or several strong risk factors together Possibly — worth discussing with your GP first, so the result fits a plan
Your GP has heard a bruit — a sound over the artery — on examination Reasonable, and usually arranged through the NHS anyway
No symptoms, no risk factors, general reassurance Generally not recommended — see below
Being Straight

Why we do not push carotid screening

We sell this scan, so weigh the following accordingly. Routine carotid screening in people without symptoms is not recommended in the UK, and it is not part of any NHS screening programme. The reasoning is worth understanding rather than taking on trust.

In a low-risk population, most narrowings found are mild and would never have caused a stroke. But finding one starts something: repeat scans, referrals, anxiety, and occasionally consideration of a procedure that carries its own stroke risk. For a mild narrowing found by chance, that chain of events can plausibly do more harm than the narrowing itself. The evidence for treating narrowed carotids is strongest in people who have already had symptoms — which is precisely the group who need the NHS urgently rather than us.

Meanwhile, the things that actually reduce stroke risk are unglamorous and mostly free: blood pressure control, atrial fibrillation detected and treated, cholesterol management, stopping smoking, and physical activity. Blood pressure alone matters far more across a population than any scan we could sell you. If stroke risk is what worries you, a GP appointment covering those is a better first purchase than imaging.

At IUS London

If a scan is right for you

  1. 1
    BookingNo referral needed, no preparation, 30 minutes. If your symptoms are recent or ongoing, we will redirect you to urgent NHS care instead.
  2. 2
    The scanLying back with the neck slightly turned. Both carotid and vertebral arteries examined with greyscale and Doppler imaging.
  3. 3
    What we measurePlaque and its appearance, degree of narrowing, blood flow velocities, and the direction of flow in the vertebral arteries.
  4. 4
    Results in contextExplained on screen as we scan, written report usually within two hours — stating what was found and, just as importantly, what it does and does not mean for your overall risk.
FAQs

Your questions answered

Should I have a carotid scan just to check?
If you have no symptoms and no significant risk factors, generally no — routine screening is not recommended in the UK, because mild findings can trigger a chain of tests and worry without improving outcomes. If you have several risk factors, discuss it with your GP first so the result means something.
What is a TIA?
A transient ischaemic attack — stroke symptoms that resolve, often within minutes. It is a serious warning sign that needs urgent same-day NHS assessment, because the risk of a full stroke is highest in the days immediately afterwards. Call 999 when it happens.
Can a scan tell me I will not have a stroke?
No. Most strokes are not caused by carotid narrowing — atrial fibrillation, small vessel disease and bleeds account for a great deal of it. A clear carotid scan is genuinely reassuring about one specific mechanism only.
What happens if narrowing is found?
It depends on how severe it is and whether you have had symptoms. Mild narrowing is usually managed with risk-factor treatment through your GP. Severe narrowing, particularly with symptoms, prompts a vascular surgery referral. Our report gives them what they need.
Does a bruit mean I have a blockage?
Not necessarily. A bruit is a sound made by turbulent flow and it correlates only loosely with the degree of narrowing — but it is a reasonable trigger for a scan, usually arranged by your GP through the NHS.
What reduces stroke risk most?
Controlling blood pressure, detecting and treating atrial fibrillation, managing cholesterol and diabetes, stopping smoking, staying active and limiting alcohol. Almost all of that runs through your GP rather than an imaging clinic.
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See the scan →

Scanned for a reason, reported in context

Both carotid and vertebral arteries assessed with Doppler in a 30-minute appointment — explained on screen as we scan, with a written report usually within two hours that says what the finding means for your risk, not just what it measures.

From £189
Carotid artery ultrasound scan

Carotid scan

5a Lucerne Mews
Kensington, London W8 4ED
3 mins from Notting Hill Gate

This article is general information about stroke risk and carotid imaging, not individual medical advice. Sudden face, arm or speech symptoms mean call 999 immediately, even if they resolve — see NHS guidance on stroke and transient ischaemic attack. Routine carotid screening without symptoms is not recommended in the UK. We do not offer blood tests or treatment.

Written and clinically reviewed by the HCPC-registered sonographers who perform this scan at IUS London — a CQC-registered diagnostic ultrasound clinic (Provider ID 1-2775844974). Your own findings are explained to you at the scan and set out in your report.

Author: Yianni Kiromitis, Senior Sonographer, HCPC RA38415 — over 20 years’ experience in NHS and private ultrasound
Medically reviewed: 9 August 2026