Diagnosing Artery Disease

Circulation and how blood is pumped through the heart and body:

• Cardiac catheterization/coronary angiography
  This test involves passing a thin, flexible tube (usually through your groin) into the right or left side of your heart with the aid of an X-ray. A special dye, called contrast is used to see how blood flows through your heart.

• Stress echocardiography
  Mainly used to evaluate coronary artery disease, the stress echocardiography test uses ultrasound to assess how the heart responds to exercise. This test differs from an exercise stress test because the exercise stress test does not use ultrasound imaging.

• Nuclear medicine stress test
  This stress test measures how well your heart functions at rest and during exercise. It involves taking images of your heart while you’re on a treadmill or stationary bike and another set of images while you’re at rest. Test results can show areas of low blood flow through the heart and damaged heart muscles.