Record numbers await heart tests, BHF finds

[FIGURES RELEASED by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) show that, at the end of September 64,962 people in England had waited more than six weeks for heart ultrasounds, known as echocardiograms: 20 times as many as there were at the end of February 2020 when the pandemic started to bite. It is the highest number since figures were first published in their current form, and represents 44% of the total waiting list for echocardiograms.

Echocardiograms – or echos – are tests which look at the structure of the heart and are used when someone has had a heart attack or if they have heart failure. They are often used to routinely diagnose congenital heart disease and heart valve problems.

As the NHS in England works hard to recover from the disruption to ‘routine’ care caused by the pandemic, significantly more echo tests are being performed in England than during the first 2020 lockdown; however, analysis by the BHF shows that, on average, around 10,000 fewer echo scans are carried out each month than before the pandemic.

According to the BHF: “We have warned that widescale disruption and reduced access to these vital tests has created a huge ‘hidden’ backlog of people with heart disease who have not yet made it onto treatment waiting lists.

“Long waits put lives at risk. Delaying a heart disease diagnosis increases the likelihood of death or disability, despite decades of research giving us life saving treatments.

“The government must act now to reduce the backlog of vital echo tests. Patients need to see a specific recovery plan for cardiovascular services in England that addresses the cardiology NHS workforce crisis and outlines how newly announced diagnostic centres could be used to help diagnose heart conditions.”

Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, the BHF’s associate medical director and consultant cardiologist, commented: “Waiting lists for heart treatments were too long even before the pandemic began, and they are now rising to record levels. Yet this is only half the story. Without an echocardiogram, doctors can’t see how well the heart is working and if someone needs potentially life-saving treatment for heart disease.

“That matters because the long delays we now see for heart imaging tests create a domino effect of disruption to heart care and treatment that ultimately puts lives at risk. This is all the more tragic when effective heart treatments exist.

“The backlog of these vital heart tests must be urgently addressed. We need to see a specific plan for cardiovascular care recovery, focused on tackling cardiology vacancies, training more heart specialists and using new diagnostic hubs to deliver delayed heart diagnosis and care.

“This could make all the difference in preventing more deaths and disability from treatable heart conditions.”

To make matters worse, analysis from the BHF also reveals a stark postcode lottery for access to echocardiograms in England. In some English regions, 55% of those waiting for an echo test had waited more than six weeks at the end of September. q