What is stress testing?

Stress testing is a cardiovascular procedure that evaluates how well your heart works during exercise. It’s a standard test the cardiovascular specialists at the Arizona Heart Rhythm Center use to find heart problems.

When you exercise, your heart pumps harder and faster, making it easier for your cardiovascular specialist to see heart problems they might miss when it pumps normally.

Why would I need stress testing?

Your Arizona Heart Rhythm Center specialist tells you why you need stress testing. They can recommend the test to find the underlying cause of your chest pain, arrhythmia, or shortness of breath (SOB).

They also perform the test to confirm or rule out heart diseases like:

• Coronary artery disease (CAD)
• Heart valve disease
• Heart failure
• Heart defects

They’ll also request stress testing if you have a diagnosed heart condition and they want to see how well your treatment is working.

What happens during stress testing?

What happens during a stress test depends on which test your provider performs. The types of stress testing include:

Exercise stress testing

Exercise stress testing is the standard test. Your provider applies electrodes to your chest attached to an electrocardiogram (EKG) machine that measures your heart’s electrical activity. They also place a blood pressure cuff on your arm to monitor your blood pressure.

They take baseline measurements when your heart is beating normally. Then they have you exercise on a treadmill or exercise bike. Your provider slowly increases the intensity of your workout until your heart reaches a target rate or you start having chest pain.

The EKG and blood pressure cuff continue to collect data.

If you’re unable to exercise, the cardiovascular specialists at the Arizona Heart Rhythm Center can give you medication that increases your heart rate. 

Echocardiogram stress testing

For echocardiogram stress testing, your provider first takes an echocardiogram (ultrasound imaging) of your heart, assessing its structure and function. Then, you start the exercise portion of your test, and your provider does another echocardiogram after you complete your exercise.

Nuclear stress testing

Nuclear stress testing is an imaging test that uses radioactive dye and a special camera to show how blood flows through your heart when it’s pumping normally and when it’s pumping hard.

During the nuclear test, your provider takes images of when your heart is resting. You exercise, and they take the second set of images.

Stress testing is a valuable tool that provides vital information about heart health. Call the Arizona Heart Rhythm Center today or schedule an appointment online to learn more about this test.