List Of Cardiovascular Tests
It is the recommendation of the ADA that annual evaluation of the factors which can lead to heart disease as well as cardiac testing for diabetic patients. An echocardiogram, a stress test, or an electrocardiogram (ECG) can be used for cardiac testing.
Exercise Stress Test
From the name itself, you know it has to do with the use of an exercise to know how well your cardiovascular and heart perform under such stress. A cuff to measure blood pressure and ECG sensor leads are used again to monitor the heart. A pulse oximeter , which is a small clamp with a light for oxygen measurement, is fixed to a site which has sufficient blood flow, like a finger, to know the oxygen level in the blood. Before starting on the stress test, a resting level of your heart performance is made.
A stationary bicycle or a treadmill is usually used for a stress test. The amount of stress is added from time to time until a particular heart rate is reached. Important signs are noted each time an increase in stress is made. Should the patient have chest pain, blood pressure which is too high or signs indicating danger, the test has to be stopped immediately. The test is usually completed in about twenty minutes. However, monitoring the heart continues after the test until the heart rate returns to normal.
Echoes and Scans
Other tests such as echocardiography and nuclear perfusion which evaluate the function as well as the structure of the heart can also be suggested by your medical practitioner. The bloodstream receives by injection a very small amount of radioactive substance in the nuclear perfusion test which is also known as a thallium scan or a Cardiolite scan. With the radioactive substance is taken into the heart muscle and this permits a special type of camera to capture a clearer image of the structures of the heart.
Inefficient absorption is linked to insufficient flow of blood and this can be an indication that there are diseased arteries leading to the heart.Coronary arterial disease (CAD) as well as tissue death in certain areas of the heart indicating an earlier heart attack or myocardiac infarction can be seen by a medical practitioner using a Cardiolite scan.
Ultrasound is used by echo, or “echocardiography” to take a look at the heart. A transducer sents out sound waves which are then deflected from the heart structures to send an image onto a screen of the heart as well as blood vessels with the blood flow seen.
Electrocardiogram (EKG, or ECG)
When an ECG is used, the heart sends out electrical impulses which are measured and gives a visual image of them. With such a test, heart rhythm irregularities, heart damage, or signs of artery disease can be detected.
To have a resting ECG, you lie on a surface and sensor leads are fixed to ten different sites on your body. The sensors have wires attached to them to take the electrical impulses of the heart to the ECG where graphic images of the impulses are seen and printed. It takes only about ten minutes to complete the test. Your medical practitioner will examine the printed tracing for signs indicating vascular or cardiac problems.
Read ECGs Like An Expert – INTERMEDIATE EKG Interpretation -Video Guide
Important
As electrocardiograms are noninvasive and not very expensive, if the possibility of getting heart disease and other linked health problems other than diabetes is great, your medical practitioner may want to use the electrocardiogram at least once a year, if not more often.