Your physician may order a stress test if you have been
experiencing chest pain or pressure with exertion or if you
have been noticing shortness of breath with activity, suffer from
certain arrhythmias or have passed out.
The currently established forms of stress testing combine
evaluation of the heart rhythm during stress with some form of
imaging the heart structure to exclude abnormalities such as
blocked artery. The available imaging modalities include
echocardiography or nuclear imaging. If you are not able to
exercise, a stress test can still be performed by use of
medications that can recreate the same circumstances of exercise
for the heart. These medications include dobutamine or adenosine.
Before your stress test, you may be told to hold some of your
medications one or two days prior to the date of testing. You
should not have anything to eat or drink for at least 3 hours
before the test unless you have conditions such as diabetes. Please
check with your physician if this applies to you. Please also wear
comfortable clothing and shoes suitable for exercise.
This test is performed at the state of art cardiac center at Noble Hospital by a highly qualified staff.
Please feel free to ask questions about the test. Dr. Pajouh will
personally supervise your stress test and depending of the type of
testing, you may receive the result right away.
