Sep 29, 2015AdminHealth Library

Echocardiogram

An echocardiogram is a test that uses ultrasound to show how your heart muscle and valves are working. The sound waves make moving pictures of your heart so your doctor can get a good look at its size and shape. You might hear them call it “echo” for short.

Why Do I Need an Echocardiogram?

Your doctor may order an echocardiogram to:

Look for heart disease
Monitor heart valve disease over time
See how well medical or surgical treatments are working

What Are the Types of Echocardiograms?

There are several types of these tests. Your doctor will tell you more about which is best for you.

Transthoracic echocardiogram

This is the standard test. It’s like an X-ray but without the radiation. Specialists use the same technology to check a baby’s health before birth.

A technician will put a hand-held device called a transducer on your chest. It sends high-frequency sound waves (ultrasound) that bounce off your heart, creating images and sounds.

On the day of the test, eat and drink as you usually would. Take all of your medications at the regular times.

You’ll take off your clothing from the waist up and put on a hospital gown. A specialist called a cardiac sonographer will put three electrodes (small, flat, sticky patches) on your chest. The electrodes are attached to an electrocardiograph monitor (EKG or ECG) that tracks your heart’s electrical activity.You’ll lie on your left side on an exam table. The sonographer will run a wand (called a sound-wave transducer) across several areas of your chest. There will be a small amount of gel on the end to help create clearer pictures.

Changes in the sound waves, called Doppler signals, can show the direction and speed of blood moving through your heart.

You may or may not hear the sounds during the test. The sonographer might ask you to move around so they can take pictures of different areas of your heart. They might also ask you to hold your breath sometimes.

You won’t feel anything during the test except coolness from the gel and slight pressure from the transducer.