Not necesarily. The test is often ordered if there is any suspicion of heart disease based upon your physician's assessment. This is similar to ordering a mammogram in women beyond the age of 40 years or a colonoscopy beyond the age of 50 years. Sometimes a stress test is ordered to exclude heart disease in persons enageged in certain professions such as commercial airline pilots, fire fighters etc.

Patients must be fasting for three hours prior to the test. Patients must also be free of caffeine of any type for 24 hours prior to testing. This includes coffee, tea, chocolate, white chocolate, aspirin compounds that contain caffeine, decaffeinated coffee or tea and other sodas which contain caffeine. Patients who are taking medications for lung problems, diabetes mellitus, congestive heart failure and Persantine may need to alter their medications. See similar questions...

A nuclear stress test is a diagnostic test to diagnose the presence of coronary artery disease, or narrowing of the arteries of your heart. This test if often performed in patients who have symptoms which suggest the presence of heart disease, or sometimes even in the absence of any symptoms if your doctor suspects that there is a possibility of this condition. See similar questions...

The nuclear test is performed in a nuclear medicine or a nuclear cardiology laboratory. It could be in a hospital or in an outpatient setting in your physician's office. The procedure can be safely performed in either setting. See similar questions...

Even a stress test isn't 100% definitive. Certainly someone with a normal stress test is at lower risk than someone with an abnormal one. But plaque in an artery can sometimes go from an undetectable 20% blockage to a critical 99% blockage overnight, much like a volcano erupting. Unfortunately, this sort of situation is almost impossible to predict or prevent. Controlling blood pressure and cholesterol and taking aspirin can help, however. Yes and no. See similar questions...

A nuclear stress test provides information related to the physiology of your heart. The test results can show the damaged areas of the heart and provide information about the narrowing or blocking of the arteries of your heart. This information is useful for predicting of the likelihood of an adverse cardiac event (such as a heart attack, need for a cardiac bypass surgery or risk of dying from heart disease) in future. See similar questions...

A stress test is usually performed on a treadmill, while the heart activity is being monitored. The main purpose of a stress test is to see if there is any evidence of blocked arteries. If there are blockages, and not enough blood gets through during exercise, changes occur in the EKG's being recorded. Sometimes, a nuclear scan is done as well, to gather additional information about the blood flow. See similar questions...

A stress test is the common term for an exercise ECG, in which disks are attached to the patient's arms and legs as well as to the chest. While connected to the ECG machine, the patient exercises on a treadmill machine or stationary bicycle. This test reveals if exercising causes (or worsens) the arrhythmia and if there is evidence of inadequate blood flow to the heart (a condition known as ischemia). See similar questions...

No, this test has to be ordered by your physician. If you are concerned about heart disease or think you may have heart disease and want to have a nuclear test, you should discuss this with your doctor. He or she will order this test if he thinks this is an appropriate test for you. See similar questions...

The stress test report is sent to your doctor, who is the best person to explain to you the results of this test. See similar questions...

A 'murmur' is an abnormal sound heard by a family physician or a paediatrician with his stethoscope. Not all murmurs are produced by abnormalities in the heart. In some children with murmurs, the heart is functionally and structurally normal. Such murmurs are referred to as 'innocent' or 'functional' murmurs. ATRIAL SEPTAL DEFECT (ASD): It is a defect in the partition separating the two atria. Usually, the left atrial pressures are higher than the right atrial ones. See similar questions...

Exercise is very good for the heart, but it's not a guarantee that you won't develop a heart condition. In fact, because you're active, it's especially important to make sure that your heart can safely tolerate the activity. Many people with coronary problems never have chest pain. See similar questions...

enlarged heart means the heart is larger than normal because of heredity or disorders and diseases such as obesity, high blood pressure, and viral illnesses. Sometimes doctors do not know what makes the heart enlarge. See similar questions...

Oxidative Stress (OS) is a general term used to describe the steady state level of oxidative damage in a cell, tissue, or organ, caused by the reactive oxygen species (ROS). This damage can affect a specific molecule or the entire organism. Reactive oxygen species, such as free radicals and peroxides, represent a class of molecules that are derived from the metabolism of oxygen and exist inherently in all oxygen breathing organisms. See similar questions...

Yes, you can ask for a copy of the nuclear stress test report to be sent sent to you. However, these reports are oftern full of medical terminology and technical jargon. It is best that this report be explained to you by your physician. See similar questions...

There are 4 possible test results: "negative", "positive", "indeterminate", or "result not available." A "negative" test result means antibodies to the hepatitis C virus were not found in your test sample and it is extremely unlikely that you have been infected with the hepatitis C virus. See similar questions...

The doctor who ordered the test will receive the results of the test. If the results indicate a problem with your heart, he or she will discuss the test result with you and recommend the treatment options. A wide variety of treatment options are currently available. These options include treatment with medications, angioplasty or heart bypass surgery. The choice of a particular treatment option or a combination of options depend upon several factors. See similar questions...

The decision to have a nuclear stress test, echocardiogram or a catheterization is primarily based on the judgement of your doctor. Different tests provide different kind of information. Depending upon the condition of your heart, your doctor will choose the the test which is best for you. Sometimes more than one test is required to assess the heart condition. The order in which these tests should be performed is based upon the judgement of your doctor. See similar questions...