An ECG provides a graphic record of the electrical activity of the heart.It is a mainstay for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease, but at the same time, the sensitivity of the ECG and especially of a resting ECG is limited for the detection of this pathology. Prolonged ECG recording is a valuable method to look for disturbances of cardiac rhythm- arrhythmias.
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STRESS ECG
The exercise ECG test is a popular, well-established procedure for answering important clinical questions related to exercise tolerance and heart disease. Unfortunately accuracy of the Exercise ECG is limited and could be misleading. Depending on the results, this could lead to an unnecessary invasive investigation namely coronary angiography – in up to 50-60% of females and up to 30 % of males. On the other hand the results of the exercise ECG could be falsely negative in a significant number of individuals.
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Echocardiography is an important non-invasive technology widely used for the evaluation of cardiac anatomy and physiology using ultrasound waves.Using this absolutely painless and non-invasive technology it is possible not only to visualize all intracardiac structures and to assess the function of the heart and valvular apparatus but also to accurately measure the intracardiac pressures (previously possible only with invasive techniques)
Constant development of different modalities of echocardiography made the non-invasive diagnosis of many cardiac pathologies readily available (when used appropriately).
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