My doctor is sending me for an electrocardiograph test. Can you tell me what this test is for?
An electrocardiograph test, or ECG, is a procedure in which the electrical impulses that flow through the heart are amplified and recorded on a strip of paper. The test gives information about the pacemaker, the part of the heart that triggers each beat, the nerve pathways throughout the heart and the rate and rhythm at which the heart beats. The test can help in the diagnosis of cardiac disorders such as previous heart attacks (myocardial infarction), abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias) or reduced blood and oxygen flow to the heart itself (ischaemia). It can also detect thickening of the heart muscle due to high blood pressure (hypertrophy) and aneurysms - a weakness in the heart wall.
I'm also having an echocardiograph carried out. How does this test differ from an ECG?
An echocardiograph is a type of ultrasound that is performed to evaluate the size, shape and movement of heart valves, walls and chambers during each cardiac cycle. The effectiveness of the heart's pumping action can also be measured. The procedure involves the transmission of high frequency sound waves through the heart. This produces various echoes that are recorded and used to build a picture that is viewed on a monitor.
I have a very low pain threshold. Are either of these tests painful?
To perform an ECG small sensors attached to sticky pads, electrodes, are placed on the skin around the body including the chest, arms and legs. The electrodes are connected to a machine by wires which produce a tracing from each sensor. The test is painless, with the removal of the electrodes akin to the removal of a sticking plaster. In echocardiography ultrasound waves are transmitted from a hand-held probe. Gel will be placed over the chest and the technician will move the probe over the heart area. The probe is connected to a monitor onto which an image is displayed. Both ECG and echocardiography are painless, non-invasive tests widely used in the diagnoses of cardiac disorders.