Patients with heart disease and those suspected to have heart disease often undergo several tests. Find out what to expect if some of these rare cardiac tests are in your future.MRIs. CT scan. ECGs. When you visit a specialist cardiologist, the doctor may use many test words, but why do you need them in cardiac diagnostics Sydney, and what are all these tests?
If you have heart problems or are suspected of having a heart condition, your doctor may arrange for a series of tests.
Echocardiogram: It basically uses sound waves to make images of your heart. This routine examination allows your doctor to monitor your heart rate and blood flow. Images from the echocardiogram are used to diagnose various abnormalities in the heart muscle and valves. These tests are usually done while resting or exercising to increase your heart rate.
Reasons for testing:
- Find out the cause of a heart attack
- Check the function of the heart valves
- Check general cardiac function
Transesophageal Echocardiography: It usually uses high-frequency sound waves to capture detailed images of your arteries and heart. An echo transducer that produces TEE sound waves is attached to a tiny tube that passes inside your mouth, into your throat, which is very close to the upper chambers of the heart.
Reasons for testing:
- Check the function of the heart valves
- Follow heart valve disease
- Look for blood clots inside the heart
Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG): Measure the heartbeat’s electrical activity to provide two types of information. First, by measuring the intervals in the ECG, the doctor can determine how long the wave of electricity travels through your heart. Finding how long a wave lasts from one part of the heart to the next shows that electrical activity is normal, slow, rapid, or abnormal.
Second, by calculating the electrical activity that goes beyond your heart muscle, your cardiologist may be able to determine if parts of the heart are too big or too overexposed.
Reasons for testing:
- Monitor changes in heart rate
- Determine if heart disease has occurred
- Help predict that heart disease is developing
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): It uses magnetic fields and radio waves to create detailed images of organs and structures within your body. It can be used to examine the heart and blood vessels and identify brain areas affected by stroke. If you go through the complete cardiac diagnostics Sydney, you can have your heart’s regular and exact condition.
Reasons for testing:
- Check heart rate
- Look for red tissue inside the heart muscle
CT scan(X-Ray): This technique uses a computer machine to produce images that divide parts of your heart. Also called cardiac computed tomography, computerized axial tomography or CAT scan can be used to check your cardiovascular system for problems. It is also used to indicate that the blood vessels in the brain are affected by stroke.
Reasons for testing:
- Check heart rate
- Determine if an obstruction exists in the coronary arteries
Your Heart Rate Test: An ETT test shows if your heart rate is adequate and your heart rate is normal during exercise on a treadmill or standing bike. Tests monitor your fatigue, heart rate, breathing, blood pressure, and heart function while exercising. These tests can be combined with nuclear imaging or echocardiography.