Your Echocardiogram

Why it was ordered

An echo can help evaluate a murmur, breathlessness, swelling, heart muscle function or known valve disease. It answers a different question from an ECG, which records electrical activity.

What to expect

For a standard transthoracic echo, you lie on an exam table while a sonographer uses gel and a probe on your chest. It does not use ionizing radiation. Some studies use an IV ultrasound-enhancing agent. A transesophageal echo (TEE) is a different procedure with separate preparation and sedation instructions.

Words you may see in the report

• Ejection fraction (EF): the percentage of blood the left ventricle ejects with a beat. About 55-70% is a commonly used normal range, with variation by lab and method. It is not a percentage of how much of the heart is working.
• Regurgitation: backward leakage through a valve. Trace or mild leakage is often followed rather than treated immediately; the valve involved, symptoms and other findings matter.
• Stenosis: narrowing of a valve.
• Diastolic function: how the heart relaxes and fills. A report finding alone does not establish heart failure.

A preserved EF does not exclude heart failure. Small differences between scans can reflect measurement variation as well as real change.

What happens next

Ask the ordering clinician to explain the important findings and whether they change treatment or follow-up. A standard resting echo does not show every coronary artery blockage. If symptoms continue, more evaluation may be needed.

Questions for your next visit

• What are the important findings in my echo?
• Does any valve finding need follow-up?
• Does this result explain my symptoms, and what happens next?

Keep reading

• Living With Heart Failure
• Aortic Stenosis and Valve Replacement