If you have experienced symptoms such as chest pain or shortness of breath, your doctor may use a stress test for whether you have a heart problem.
What is a stress test?
These tests measure how your heart works during activity or stress. It is one of the most common doctors use to diagnose and monitor many types of heart disease testing
Your doctor may order this test to see :.
- If you have heart disease
- How well the treatment, such as medicine, angioplasty or cardiac surgery, works
- Whether you are good enough health to begin an exercise or surgery program
what to expect when your stress test
stress tests take place in the your doctor's office or hospital. During the test, a doctor, nurse or technician will be with you to keep an eye on your blood pressure and heart rate and blood to monitor your symptoms
There are different types of resistance tests, including:.
- a standard stress test, which uses an electrocardiogram, or EKG, to measure electrical signals from your heart while you exercise, usually walking on a treadmill
- a stress echocardiogram, which includes an echocardiogram, a kind of cardiac imaging test, to take pictures of your heart before and after by walking on a treadmill or using a drug that takes the place exercise
- a nuclear stress test, which uses a small amount of radioactive material and a special camera to take pictures of your heart before and after by walking on a treadmill or in use of a drug that takes the place of the exercise
your doctor will decide what kind of test is best for you based on your symptoms and general health. Before your test, your doctor will tell you how to prepare, including what to wear and whether to take your regular medications.
Standard stress test exercise
Before the test, a nurse put sticky spots called "electrodes" on your chest, arms and legs. The nurse may have to shave your skin to ensure that the patches stick.
The electrodes connect to an electrocardiogram, which records the electrical activity of your heart. The nurse will place a blood pressure cuff on your arm to measure your blood pressure during the test.
During the test, you walk on a treadmill or pedal a stationary bike until your heart as hard as it can. The exercises will be more difficult during the test.
If you are not able to exercise, you will receive medicine to mimic the effects of exercise. This can cause chest pain, flushing, or other symptoms that disappear after the test is done
Be sure to tell the nurse symptoms you have, including :.
- Chest pain
- Breathlessness
- Vertigo
exercise stress echocardiography
is a stress echocardiogram similar to a standard stress test, but you echocardiogram or "echo" before and after exercise or take medications to work your heart stronger.
echocardiogram uses sound waves to take pictures of your heart in motion. During an echocardiogram, a specially trained technician presses a small device called a "sensor" against your chest and moves back and forth. The transducer detects and transmits sound waves, which are then read by the test monitor to show images of your heart.
nuclear stress test
A nuclear stress test uses a small amount of radioactive material and a special camera to take pictures of your heart before and after exercise or take medications to mimic the effects of exercise.
During the test, you get a shot of a harmless radioactive tracer and your heart is scanned as you rest. Then you are going to exercise or take medications to make your heart work harder and get another shot tracer and scanning.
A traditional nuclear stress test uses a gamma camera, a ring-shaped imaging machine to take pictures of your heart at rest and after activity. In a gamma camera, you must stand still with your arms above your head, and each test takes about 20 minutes.
Doctors of the Heart Institute and UPMC vascular also use the D-SPECT® newest nuclear cardiology camera that allows you to sit during the scans. This camera is available at UPMC Presbyterian.
Getting Results Stress Test
Your doctor will usually have the results of stress testing in about a week and review the results with you.
If your results are normal, you may not need further tests. If your results are abnormal, you may need other tests to find out what is causing your symptoms.
For more information on stress tests, contact the Heart and Vascular Institute at UPMC 1-855-UPMC- HVI (876-2484) .
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