Echocardiogram Procedure: Preparation and What Happens

An echocardiogram is usually recommended by the doctor right after hearing the patient's complaints. Those complaints can point to an abnormality or damage in your heart, so a deeper examination is needed to reach an accurate diagnosis. Here is how to prepare for a heart ultrasound.

How to Prepare for a Heart Ultrasound

A heart ultrasound is usually done at a hospital that has the medical equipment to handle heart conditions. Overall, though, this test needs no special preparation. Patients scheduled for it do not have to prepare anything.

Patients are not asked to fast or to avoid medication beforehand, as they would be for many other tests. Although nothing is off limits, patients are only asked to see a cardiologist for a consultation and routine check before the scan.

Read also: Tips for Keeping a Child's Heart Healthy

That freedom to eat and take medication does not apply to patients scheduled for a transesophageal echocardiogram or a stress echocardiogram. Patients having a transesophageal echocardiogram are asked to fast for 8 hours before the exam.

Patients having a stress echocardiogram must eat a heavy meal at least 4 hours before the exam begins. They are also asked to wear comfortable clothes and pants, because during the exam they have to do light exercise, such as walking on a treadmill.

You do not need to worry about pain during the exam. Its only purpose is to check the condition of your heart. The process itself takes just 15 to 30 minutes, and in that time the doctor can already diagnose the type of heart disease the patient has.

How a Heart Ultrasound Is Done

Before the exam begins, the patient is asked to remove clothing from the chest down to the waist and lie on the exam bed. The doctor then places a probe on the chest, which has been coated with gel first. The gel helps the probe stick to the skin properly.

Good contact automatically affects the quality and dimensions of the images the probe can produce. The doctor then moves the probe across your chest to capture the images needed, and in doing so gives a full reading of the heart's function and structure.

The exam usually lasts just 15 to 30 minutes. It will take longer if the doctor has not yet gathered enough information about the patient's heart function and structure. Each patient may even go through a different procedure, depending on the type of echocardiogram needed.

In short, a heart ultrasound needs no preparation, except for a stress echocardiogram and a transesophageal echocardiogram. After that, you should follow every procedure set during the exam to get more accurate results.