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Stress Testing |
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UT Southwestern Medical Center provides comprehensive stress testing services, including electrocardiograms (ECGs), echocardiograms and nuclear medicine procedures. Heart specialists use these tests to help determine the health of a patient’s heart, including the strength of the heart muscle and blood pumping efficiency. Nuclear medicine stress tests supply additional information about the heart and coronary arteries.
- An electrocardiogram stress test uses small adhesive electrode patches that a specialist places on the chest and connects to an ECG recording device, which measures heart function during exercise. A patient’s blood pressure is also recorded before, during and after the stress test. During the test, they will be asked to begin slowly and gradually increase the pace of their walking or pedaling until it becomes uncomfortable to continue.
An echocardiogram stress test also involves using small adhesive patches placed on the chest and connected to an ECG device. In addition to the information obtained by the ECG device, a sonographer will take ultrasound pictures of the heart before and after exercising. These ultrasound pictures examine how the heart responds to exercise. Patients who are unable to exercise may receive an intravenous (IV) line to provide a drug that mimics the effects of exercise, allowing an ultrasound examiner to use a hand-held device to record echo images as the heart rate increases.
- A nuclear medicine stress test involves using a treadmill or stationary bicycle to reach a maximum level of exercise, and then a specialist injects a small amount of radioactive substance into the bloodstream. Images of a patient’s heart are taken immediately after the exercise test to show blood flow during a stress-test condition. Two to three hours later, another series of images are taken to reveal blood flow during a resting condition. The test delivers detailed images that can be used to determine the amount of coronary artery blockage, as well as the effectiveness of any previous treatments performed to improve coronary artery blood flow.
During all stress testing procedures, laboratory personnel will constantly monitor the patient’s condition and request feedback on any shortness of breath, discomfort or pain experienced. After the test, a cardiology specialist will interpret the results of the examination and thoroughly discuss what the test reveals about the patient’s heart condition.
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