QUESTION: Although I think I know what a cardiogram involves, I am less certain about the way an Echocardiogram works.
A member of my family is to have one, and I am both curious as to why as well as concerned with the safety of this test.
Would you please shed some light on this question?
ANSWER: I would be pleased to, for I can certainly reassure you as to the safety of this procedure.
It is simple and noninvasive, and uses very fast sound waves which pass through the patient's chest to the heart and bounce back (echo) to produce a record or graph which forms an image that the physician can use to evaluate the walls and chambers of the heart, as well as the valves which control the flow of blood through the heart as it beats. While an electrocardiogram produces the pattern of electrical flow through the heart and may be used to evaluate changes in rhythm, for example, and blood tests may show the alterations in enzymes produced by a heart during a heart attack, an echocardiogram may yield early information on the size and extent of the attack, the location, as well as the presence of clots or masses, while measuring heart function and the condition of the valves.
Sometimes a chest x-ray shows the heart to be enlarged, and the "echo" will reveal whether the heart wall has become stretched or thickened due to disease.
It may detect the presence of fluid in the sac that covers the heart, and is a useful tool to measure the effect of medications and treatment on the heart muscle mass and size.
There is little preparation necessary, and there is no pain nor discomfort while the test is being conducted.
The patient remains totally awake and conscious while the probe that both sends and receives the sound signal is moved about the chest to obtain the best "picture" of the heart in action.
The test has been in use for more than twenty years, is relatively inexpensive when compared to other tests, and is free from side effects, both physical as well as psychological.
While I can not offer you more information as to why the test is being conducted for your family member, you may be confident as to their well being.
The material contained here is "FOR INFORMATION ONLY" and should not replace the counsel and advice of your personal physician.
Promptly consulting your doctor is the best path to a quick and successful resolution of any medical problem.
