An
echocardiogram uses sound waves to produce images of your heart. This test allows your
doctor to see your heart beating and pumping blood. Your doctor can use
the images from an echocardiogram to identify heart disease.
Depending on what information your doctor needs, you may have one of several
types of echocardiograms.
Stress Testing
Mary Washington and Stafford Hospitals
A stress test, also called an
exercise stress test, shows how your heart works during physical activity. Because exercise
makes your heart pump harder and faster, an exercise stress test can reveal
problems with blood flow within your heart.
A stress test usually involves walking on a treadmill or riding a stationary
bike; your heart rhythm, blood pressure and breathing are monitored. Alternatively,
you'll receive a drug that mimics the effects of exercise.
Your doctor may recommend a stress test if you have signs or symptoms of
coronary artery disease or an irregular heart rhythm (arrhythmia). The
test may also guide treatment decisions, measure the effectiveness of
treatment or determine the severity if you've already been diagnosed with
a heart condition.
Nuclear Scan
Mary Washington and Stafford Hospitals
A nuclear stress test uses radioactive dye and an imaging machine to create
pictures showing the blood flow to your heart. The test measures blood
flow while you are at rest and are exerting yourself, showing areas with
poor blood flow or damage in your heart.
The test usually involves injecting radioactive dye, then taking two sets
of images of your heart—one while you're at rest and another after exertion.
A nuclear stress test is one of several types of stress tests that may
be performed alone or in combination. Compared with an exercise stress
test, a nuclear stress test can help better determine your risk of a heart
attack or other cardiac event if your doctor knows or suspects that you
have coronary artery disease.
Tilt-Table Testing
Mary Washington and Stafford Hospitals
If you often feel faint or lightheaded, your doctor may use a
tilt-table test to find out why. During the test, you lie on a table that is slowly tilted
upward. The test measures how your blood pressure and heart rate respond
to the force of gravity. A nurse or technician keeps track of your blood
pressure and your heart rate (pulse) to see how they change during the test.
Electrocardiogram
Mary Washington and Stafford Hospitals
An
electrocardiogram—abbreviated as EKG or ECG—is a test that measures the electrical
activity of the heartbeat. With each beat, an electrical impulse (or “wave”)
travels through the heart. This wave causes the muscle to squeeze and
pump blood from the heart. A normal heartbeat on ECG will show the timing
of the top and lower chambers.
The right and left atria or upper chambers make the first wave called a
“P wave" — following a flat line when the electrical
impulse goes to the bottom chambers. The right and left bottom chambers
or ventricles make the next wave called a “QRS complex." The
final wave or “T wave” represents electrical recovery or return
to a resting state for the ventricles.
Pulse Volume Recordings (PVR)
Mary Washington and Stafford Hospitals
Latest test performed by our cardiologists and interventional radiologists
prior to peripheral angiograms to determine any blockages in the legs.
PVRs provide more accurate blockage locations than Ankle Brachial Index
(ABI) or Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA) tests.
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