People who should get their heart test and why?

August 26, 2022 jacki

Cardiac screening

Cardiac screening or heart tests find diseases before the appearance of symptoms. The reason for doing screening is to find the disease at its earliest stage so that it can be treated easily. One of the popular cardiac tests is the cardiac enzyme test. In addition, this test helps the doctor determine whether that person has a heart attack or that they may already have a heart attack. However, for a test to be widely accepted by doctors, they must meet a number of things like reducing the deaths from a given disease.

These cardiac tests may include other lab tests to evaluate blood and other fluids. There are also genetic tests that look for the genetic markers that might be associated with the disease and also the imaging testing that helps to find the location of the disease. These tests, like cardiac enzyme tests, are provided to everyone. However, the individual needs for specific tests are based on the factors like gender, age, and family history. In cardiac screening, the individuals with no symptoms of artery disease. One of the most common heart tests is used to measure the following:

If the levels of cholesterol in the blood are at high levels, there are possibilities that this may lead to the buildup of arteries. Meanwhile, the high-density HDL absorbs cholesterol. Afterward, they carried it to the liver, where it is excreted from the body.
Your blood glucose levels are evaluated to see the amount of sugar present in the blood.
Your C-reactive protein in the blood is also evaluated with a screening called high-sensitivity c-reactive protein assay. If the results display that there are high levels of c-reactive proteins, there may be swelling or inflammation somewhere in the body.
Your blood pressure level is also evaluated.

How often must a heart disease screening, like a cardiac enzyme test, be done?

It is crucial for everyone to start getting started taking heart disease tests by the time they turn 20 years old. Many professionals also suggest that they should come back for additional screenings every two to four years. Similarly, this also depends on the risk factors. If the case is severing, the doctor may suggest a different heart screening schedule than a normal one.

The additional testing may include

EKG: this particular test measures the electric activity of your ticker and displays information like heart rate and rhythm.

Exercise cardiac stress test: this test involves walking on a treadmill or pedaling a stationary bike followed by enhancing the difficulty. In this process, your heart rate, rhythm, blood pressure, and electrical activity of the heart is monitored to see if there is reliable blood flow to the heart. So, if there is a problem with the patient when exercising, the doctor will suggest a medication that will make your heart beat faster and harder.

Echocardiography: in this test, ultrasound is used to create moving pictures of the heart. Additionally, in stress echocardiography, the ultrasound is performed before and after when the heart is stressed. They can make it stress through exercise or by medication that stimulates the heart.

Cardiac CT: This test examines the coronary arteries to see the levels of calcium in it. These levels are an indicator of plaque in the arteries. However, this cannot evaluate the seriousness of coronary artery narrowing.

CTA: this screening uses computed tomography and an intravenous contrast material to develop 3D images of coronary arteries to know the location and density of plaque buildup.

MPI: in this test, a small amount of radioactive material is inserted into the patient. A special camera takes pictures of the heart while the patient is resting and also when they do exercise to determine the effects of physical stress on the blood flow.