Diagnostic Tests

GE LightSpeedVCT Scanner: This is a devise creates 64 high resolution images that combine to form a three-dimensional view of a patient's anatomy. Cardiologists of the OSF Saint Anthony Regional Heart Institute and radiologists from Camelot Radiology are working together to use this CT technology effectively for medical center patients. The LightSpeed scanner can diagnose the cause of chest pain in minutes and allow physicians to carry out the proper treatments. It generates a three-dimensional view of the heart and the coronary arteries, and provides information about what type of plaque is in the arteries.

Radiographic Tests: Non-invasive tests, such as X-rays, provide your medical team with images of the internal structures of the chest.

EKG: An electrocardiogram (EKG) is an electrical recording of the heart used in the investigation of heart disease. It records the electrical current coming from your heart. This non-invasive test takes five to 10 minutes. Thirteen electrodes (patches) are placed on your chest area, a special recording machine is fed information from the electrodes and the readings are printed on paper.

Coronary and Vascular Ultrasounds: These non-invasive tests use ultrasound technology to provide your medical team with an inside view of your arteries. It is used to help diagnose coronary or peripheral vascular disease.

Holter Monitor: This monitor allows your healthcare team to obtain a 24 to 48 hour reading of your heart's electrical activity (EKG) for a cardiologist to study. You are asked to wear a small tape recorder with a carrying case and strap for 24 or 48 hours. Five small electrodes (patches) are placed on your chest and connected to the recorder. In addition, you may be asked to write in a special diary about any special activities or symptoms.

Tilt Table Test: The purpose of the tilt table test is to help determine what the appropriate therapy for unexplained fainting spells. During a tilt table test, you lie on your back and the table is brought to predetermined angles from a horizontal (level) position. This helps determine the cause of any decrease in oxygen to the brain. Sometimes, medications are used in the testing process.

Echocardiogram: An echocardiogram is a non-invasive ultrasound test that helps diagnose coronary heart disease, valvular heart disease, congenital heart disease, as well as abnormal heart rhythms and murmurs. During this test, sound waves are sent into the chest and bounce (echo) from the heart's walls and valves. The recorded sound waves show the shape, texture and movement of the valves and muscle walls of the heart. They also show the size of the heart chambers and how well they're working.

Echocardiogram Stress Test: A stress echocardiogram is a non-invasive test that helps identify coronary artery disease and evaluate heart valve function changes during exercise. As with an echocardiogram, sound waves are used to create images of the heart's structure and movement. However, in a stress echocardiogram the images are taken at rest and immediately following exercise.

Exercise Stress Test: This test allows your healthcare team to see how well your heart works when you exercise. Patches are placed on your chest and are connected to wires from a heart monitor. An Exercise Physiologist will check your heart rate, rhythm and blood pressure at rest, during and after you walk and/or run on a treadmill. Sometimes, a mouth piece is used to obtain specific information about your body's energy requirements.

Nuclear Stress Test or Radionuclide Scan: This non-invasive test is used to evaluate several things including the blood supply to the heart, how the four chambers of the heart are working and possible damage to the heart. Radionuclides, which act as a dye, are injected into the bloodstream and a sophisticated computer that "sees" the dye creates images of the heart from several angles.

Coronary Angiography or Angiogram: This diagnostic procedure, conducted by a cardiologist, is an examination of the blood vessels and/or chambers of the heart. During the procedure, a very small tube (catheter) is inserted into a blood vessel in your groin or arm. A special fluid called a contrast medium or dye is injected and the tip of the tube is positioned either in the heart or the arteries that supply blood to the heart. This fluid is visible by X-ray, and helps to identify the location and degree of artery blockages.

Coronary or Peripheral Angioplasty: These procedures often take place during angiography or angiogram. A cardiologist inserts a balloon catheter over a thin wire across a blockage of an artery. When in position, the balloon catheter is inflated. As it inflates, it helps break apart the plaque causing the blockage. This allows the blood to flow through the artery more freely.

Coronary and Peripheral Stents: These are tiny wire mesh medical devices inserted into the coronary artery. Stents functions as a scaffold and help hold the inside of the artery open. Stents are usually put into place with a balloon angioplasty catheter. Stents reduce the incidence of both short and long term artery re-occlusion (closing). Stents can be used in the arteries that feed blood to your heart or in arteries of the lower half of your body (called the peripheral vascular system).

Coronary Brachytherapy: Brachytherapy is the placement of radioactive seeds in a coronary artery just prior to the placement of a stent. This new treatment strategy is for people who have undergone previous stent implantation in a coronary artery and developed problems such as the re-narrowing of the artery. Dr. Michael Hogan of the Regional Heart Institute performed the first Coronary Brachytherapy procedure in Rockford at OSF Saint Anthony.

Coronary Atherectomy: Atherectomy is a non-surgical procedure that opens blocked coronary arteries or vein grafts by using a rotating shaver or other device on the end of a catheter to cut or shave away atherosclerotic plaque (the deposit that builds up the lining of the artery wall). A catheter is inserted into an artery in the groin, leg, or arm, and threaded through the blood vessels into the blocked coronary artery. The cutting head is positioned against the plaque and activated, and the plaque is ground up or suctioned out. This procedure helps restore blood flow to the heart, relieve chest pain and may help prevent heart attack.

Electrophysiology Mapping and Evaluation Studies: Because heart arrhythmias (irregular heart beats) usually occur sporadically, the goal of an electrophysiology study is to spot or reproduce the arrhythmia so that it can be identified and treated. These studies involve inserting catheters into peripheral arteries and threading them to various positions in the heart. A computer translates the electrical impulses into computer images that physicians examine and analyze.

Intracardiac Ablation Procedures: Once an arrhythmia is identified, one treatment option is an intracardiac ablation procedure, also called "Heart Mapping," which provides a three-dimensional view of the entire heart chamber in just a few minutes. Heart Mapping allows physicians to find multiple points of origin for arrhythmias and treat the source of the irregular heartbeat using ultrasound or radiofrequency.