Echocardiography
- Echocardiography (echo) is a test that uses sound waves to create a moving picture of your heart. The picture shows how well your heart is working and its size and shape. There are several types of echo, including stress echo.
- Stress echo can show whether you have decreased blood flow to your heart, a sign of coronary heart disease. Another type of echo is transesophageal (tranz-ih-sof-uh-JEE-ul) echo, or TEE.
- TEE provides a view of the back of the heart. For this test, a sound wave wand is put on the end of a special tube. The tube is gently passed down your throat and into your esophagus (the passage leading from your mouth to your stomach). Because this passage is right behind the heart.
How the Test is Performed
A Cardiologist or Sonographer uses a special type of Ultrasound machine and probe to perform an ultrasound of the heart. This is usually done with the probe on the chest, known as a Trans-Thoracic Echocardiogram or TTE.
Sometimes it is necessary to get the probe even closer to the heart and this is achieved by a Trans-Oesophageal Echocardiogram or “TOE” - the probe has to be swallowed and heavy sedation or a general anaesthetic is often required to make this tolerable.
- Relevant Specialties
- Cardiology
- Neurology
- Emergency Medicine
- General Practice
Recently updated doctors performing Echocardiography
- Dr Salman Rahman (Cardiologist)
- Dr Clara Chow (Cardiologist)
- Dr Clive Jankelowitz (Cardiologist)
- Dr Vishva Wijesekera (Cardiologist)
- Dr William Moir (Cardiologist)
- Dr Sean Mulhearn (Cardiologist)
- Dr David Colquhoun (Cardiologist)
- Dr Christopher Hayward (Cardiologist)
- Dr Atifur Rahman (Cardiologist)
- Dr Philip Mottram (Cardiologist)
Browse doctors performing Echocardiography
