Chest pain is a symptom of many harmless and life-threatening conditions. A stress test is usually administered to help you detect any coronary artery diseases or other possible causes of chest pain. A stress test involves either exercising on a bike or treadmill, or taking a medicine that produces an effect similar to exercise. Throughout the entire test, you will be closely monitored and frequently given blood pressure checks.
Stress Tests
The simplest kind of stress test is an exercise involves walking on a treadmill while being continuously monitored for EKG and blood pressure. Doctors may use imaging methods like echocardiography and nuclear imaging to increase the test’s accuracy. Echocardiography shows visuals of your heart walls; nuclear imaging shows the blood flow to different parts of your heart. With echocardiography, images of significant blockage in an artery is obtained after exercise. Nuclear imaging detects abnormalities when an area of the heart seems to have less blood flow compared to the others. For both tests, two sets of imagines are obtained–one during rest and another after the exercise period.
Exercise Stress Tests
An exercise stress test can provide your doctor with information about your chances of having a coronary artery disease better than a non-exercise stress test can. If you are really unable to exercise, you can take medication like dobutamine, persantine, and adenosine, which mimics exercise by increasing your blood pressure and heart rate. These tests are often combined with echocardiography and nuclear imaging.
Before taking a stress test, do not eat six hours prior to the test or drink caffeine 24 hours before an adenosine or persantine test. Ask your doctor about what medicine you should take before the test, especially if you have diabetes or high blood pressure. If you’ll be doing an exercise stress test, make sure you wear comfortable clothes and shoes, and bring an inhaler if you need one for breathing.