Private AAA Scan in London: Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Ultrasound

A private AAA scan at London Private Ultrasound is £219, all-inclusive. That covers the ultrasound measurement of the abdominal aorta and iliac arteries, the findings explained on the day, a written diagnostic report within 24 hours, advice on any surveillance interval, and a referral letter if onward care is needed.

Private AAA scans in London generally sit between roughly £180 and £280, so compare what is actually included: some quotes cover the scan alone, with the report charged separately. If you are a man aged 65 or over in England, NHS AAA screening is free and you should take it. A private scan is for people the programme does not cover, or who do not want to wait.

In England, the NHS AAA Screening Programme invites men for a single ultrasound of the abdominal aorta during the year they turn 65. Men over 65 who have never been screened are not invited automatically but can self-refer directly to their local screening service. Similar programmes run in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Women are not routinely screened, because abdominal aortic aneurysm is around six times more common in men. That leaves clear gaps: men under 65 with a strong family or smoking history, women with risk factors, people who missed or declined their invitation, and anyone wanting a repeat measurement of an aneurysm they already know about.

For the group it targets, the evidence is unusually clear. Around 1 in 70 men aged 65 in England has an abdominal aortic aneurysm, and ruptured aneurysms account for roughly 3,000 deaths a year in men aged 65 and over in England and Wales. Randomised trials showed that offering men a single ultrasound in their 65th year reduces premature deaths from rupture by up to half, which is why the NHS programme exists.

It works because an aneurysm is silent until it ruptures, at which point it is usually fatal, whereas a planned repair carries a low risk. Screening is less clearly worthwhile for people at very low risk, where a normal result is the overwhelmingly likely outcome. That is a reasonable conversation worth having before booking rather than after.

AAA stands for abdominal aortic aneurysm, often written or said as triple A. The aorta is the main artery carrying blood from the heart down through the chest and abdomen, and an aneurysm is a permanent bulge or weakening of the artery wall.

When the abdominal section of the aorta measures 3.0 cm or more across, it is classed as an abdominal aortic aneurysm. An AAA scan is simply an ultrasound that measures that diameter.

An abdominal aorta under 3.0 cm is normal. From 3.0 cm it is classed as an aneurysm: 3.0 to 4.4 cm is small, 4.5 to 5.4 cm is medium, and 5.5 cm or more is large.

Large aneurysms, and any aneurysm growing faster than about 1 cm a year, are referred to a vascular surgeon for assessment. Most people who have an AAA scan have a normal result.

Surveillance intervals follow size. A small aneurysm of 3.0 to 4.4 cm is usually rescanned once a year; a medium aneurysm of 4.5 to 5.4 cm every three months. At 5.5 cm or more the question is no longer surveillance but whether repair is appropriate, so a vascular assessment is arranged.

If you are already in an NHS surveillance programme, stay in it. A private scan can sit alongside it as an extra measurement, but it does not replace it.

Ideally yes. Avoiding food for around four to six hours beforehand, and avoiding fizzy drinks that day, reduces bowel gas, which is the main thing that obscures the aorta on ultrasound. Water is fine and you should take all prescribed medication as normal.

If you have diabetes or another reason not to fast, tell us when you book and we will adapt. The scan is often still successful without fasting, particularly in slimmer patients, and attending unfasted is much better than not attending.

No. You can self-refer and book directly online, by phone on 020 7101 3377, or by WhatsApp. Same-day and next-day appointments are often available, seven days a week.

If you have previous aortic measurements, a hospital letter or a surveillance record, bring them. A comparison against earlier scans is far more informative than a single number on its own.

Allow 20 to 30 minutes. The scan itself is painless: warm gel is applied to the abdomen and a probe is passed over the skin, and you may be asked to breathe in and hold briefly to bring the aorta into view.

Nothing enters the body and no radiation is used, so there are no known risks or side effects and no recovery time. You can eat, drive and go back to work straight afterwards.

Yes. Women are not invited by the NHS programme because aneurysms are around six times more common in men, but women do develop them, and there is evidence that outcomes are worse when they do.

A private scan is reasonable for a woman with a family history of aortic aneurysm, a significant smoking history, high blood pressure or known arterial disease elsewhere, particularly beyond the age of 70.

Planned repair is now a low-risk operation. UK National Vascular Registry figures for 2023 record in-hospital mortality after elective keyhole repair (EVAR) of 0.3 per cent and 2.7 per cent after elective open repair, so more than 97 in every 100 patients survive either planned operation.

Emergency surgery after a rupture is a different situation entirely: in-hospital mortality was around 21 per cent for emergency EVAR and around 46 per cent for emergency open repair, and that only counts people who reach an operating theatre. Including deaths before hospital, most ruptures are fatal. That gap is the whole argument for finding an aneurysm early. Your individual risk depends on age, heart and lung function and the anatomy of the aneurysm, and your surgeon will give you personal figures.

Most cause no symptoms at all, which is why they are usually found by screening or by chance on a scan done for another reason. Where symptoms do occur, they can include a pulsating sensation in the abdomen, or a persistent ache in the tummy, side or lower back.

Sudden severe abdominal or back pain, especially with dizziness, sweating, collapse or a feeling that something is seriously wrong, may indicate a rupture. That is a medical emergency: call 999 rather than booking a scan.

You are told on the day. A small aneurysm of 3.0 to 4.4 cm means annual surveillance plus attention to blood pressure, cholesterol and smoking. A medium aneurysm of 4.5 to 5.4 cm means closer surveillance, usually three-monthly, alongside vascular review. An aneurysm of 5.5 cm or more, or one growing rapidly, means an urgent referral letter to a vascular surgeon.

We are a diagnostic service, so specialist consultation, CT planning and any surgery are arranged separately and carry their own cost. Your written report and referral letter are yours to use in the NHS or privately, whichever you prefer.

To begin with, most are not treated at all. A small aneurysm of 3.0 to 4.4 cm is simply measured once a year, and the most useful things you can do are keeping blood pressure under control, managing cholesterol and stopping smoking, which slows growth more than anything else available. A medium aneurysm of 4.5 to 5.4 cm is measured more often, usually every three months, with a vascular surgeon following the picture.

Repair is considered at 5.5 cm or more, or when an aneurysm is growing quickly. There are two routes. EVAR is a keyhole repair that lines the aneurysm from the inside using a stent graft passed up through the groin arteries, with a short recovery and lifelong imaging follow-up. Open repair replaces the affected section with a graft through an abdominal incision, which is a bigger operation with a longer recovery but a durable result. Which suits you depends on your general health and the shape of the aneurysm.

We are a diagnostic service, so specialist consultations, CT planning and surgery are arranged separately and carry their own cost. Your report and referral letter are yours to use in the NHS or privately, whichever you prefer.

An AAA scan is a focused examination of the abdominal aorta and iliac arteries, not a general abdominal survey. Incidental findings are occasionally seen and are always reported.

If you want the liver, gallbladder, kidneys, pancreas and spleen assessed too, the right test is a full abdominal ultrasound scan, which can be booked at the same visit. Be wary of any clinic advertising an aorta scan as a check for lumps, masses or cancer. That is a different examination.

It is the same measurement, using the same technique, read against the same thresholds used by the NHS AAA Screening Programme and NICE guideline NG156. What differs is the setting: a private appointment you can book at any age, on any day of the week, usually within 24 to 48 hours, with a written report you keep.

It does not enter you into the NHS screening programme record, and if you are already under NHS surveillance you should continue with it.

Yes. The written diagnostic report is issued within 24 hours and is designed to be shared: it states the measurement, the classification and the recommended interval or referral. Patients routinely take it to their NHS GP, to a vascular surgeon, or submit it to an insurer.

Where an onward referral is appropriate, a referral letter is included at no extra charge.

Usually the same day or the next day. Both clinics are open seven days a week from 9am to 7pm, and the appointment takes 20 to 30 minutes.

If your concern is urgent but not an emergency, call 020 7101 3377 and the team will find the earliest slot. If it is an emergency, call 999.

London Private Ultrasound has two clinics. Central London is at 27 Welbeck Street, W1G 8EN, in the Harley Street Medical District, a short walk from Bond Street, Oxford Circus and Marylebone, and convenient for Mayfair, Fitzrovia, Soho, the City and Paddington.

St Albans is at 54–56 Victoria Street, AL1 3HZ, serving Hertfordshire and North London. Both are open seven days a week, 9am to 7pm.