Cardiac Tests

Excercise Stress Echo

Sometimes the cardiologist may wish to perform a stress echo. The heart may look normal when it does not have to work very hard, and problems may only become apparent when the heart works hard. It is therefore a common test on patients where there is a suspected problem with their coronary arteries, or when there is a suspected rhythm problem.

During the procedure, the patient is attached to an ECG monitor, and the technician first takes a few pictures of the heart at rest. The next stage involves walking on the treadmill, beginning very slowly, and increasing speed and slope gradually at three minute intervals. The treadmill is used to increase the heart rate, and to see how your heart functions when it has to work hard.

The patient’s heart rate, rhythm and blood pressure are monitored throughout the procedure. The cardiologist will stop the test at the appropriate point, but it is important to try as hard as you can to get your heart rate up, in order for the test to be as accurate as possible. Lastly, the patient returns to the bed very quickly after the treadmill has stopped, in order for the technician to take more pictures whilst the heart is still pumping fast.

The cardiologist then compares the resting images with the post-exercise images, and will discuss the results with you.

As some patients feel nauseous from the drug, we ask that they fast for four hours prior to the test, and only drink water. The cardiologist inserts a small cannula into the patient’s arm in order to administer the drugs via an automated drug pump. At the conclusion of the test, which generally takes about twenty minutes, the patients are offered light refreshments, and stay for approximately another twenty minutes after the test, have the cannula removed and then are permitted to go home. A full instruction sheet is available from our staff for each patient who is undergoing this particular test.