Diagnostics & Testing
Evaluation with cutting-edge technology.
Get the full picture for accurate heart assessments.
Overview
Your heart care team works with our highly skilled radiologists and imaging technicians to provide the very best diagnostic and testing services. We offer many imaging options to collect pictures of your heart and blood vessels. We can even capture every beat of your heart and send that information in real-time directly to your team of physicians, whether they’re in the same room, across town or miles away. Non-invasive imaging options include ultrasound, MRI and CT scans. Our minimally invasive procedures use a tiny camera inserted into an artery and threaded into your heart to capture and project pictures of the inside of your heart and arteries. Even more importantly, our team of physicians has the expertise to use the various types of imaging available to create a comprehensive and accurate assessment of your condition.
Types of diagnostics & testing
Angiograms & catheterizations
An angiogram is an X-ray test that uses a special iodine contrast dye and camera (fluoroscopy) to take pictures inside your body. When used to visualize the heart, it is called a coronary angiogram or cardiac catheterization. Angiograms can also be used to visualize other vessels, including those in the brain, abdomen, and legs.
Interventional cardiologists perform the procedure in the cardiac catheterization laboratory, staffed by highly trained registered nurses and technicians who assist the physicians. Angiograms aid in the diagnosis of a variety of cardiovascular conditions, including coronary artery disease, peripheral artery disease (PAD), aneurysms, and aortic arch conditions.
Angiography
Angioplasty is a procedure used to open blocked coronary arteries and restore blood flow without open-heart surgery. It is used in emergencies, such as a heart attack, or can be done as elective surgery if your healthcare provider suspects you have heart disease.
Cardiac CT scan
A cardiac CT scan is a painless imaging test that uses X-rays to take many detailed pictures of your heart and its blood vessels. Computers can combine these pictures to create a three-dimensional (3D) model of the whole heart.
Cardiac genetic testing
St. Luke’s cardiac genetic testing works hand-in-hand with genetic counseling to help you determine if you have a genetic predisposition to developing one or more types of cardiovascular disease and what you can do about it. Testing involves providing a sample of your DNA, such as blood or saliva, to a laboratory to identify or rule out the presence of gene variants that cause inherited disease. Our genetics counselors will work with you to assess if testing is right for you. If your tests are positive, they work with you and your heart care team to determine treatment and lifestyle changes to minimize your risk of cardiovascular disease progression.
Cardiac imaging - non-invasive
Non-invasive cardiac imaging refers to a combination of methods physicians use to obtain images related to the structure and function of the heart. As opposed to invasive techniques, which require catheters inserted into the heart, non-invasive tests are easier to perform and safer. They can be used to detect various heart conditions, from plaque in the arteries that supply the heart muscle (coronary artery disease) to abnormalities that impair the heart's ability to pump blood. Types of non-invasive cardiac imaging include electrocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart), exercise treadmill testing, coronary artery calcium scoring scan, cardiac MRI, cardiac CT and nuclear stress test.
Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET or CPEX)
Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET or CPEX), is a specialized stress test, or exercise test, that measures exhaled oxygen and carbon dioxide during exercise. Most patients will exercise on a treadmill. The test allows measurement of the peak oxygen consumption (VO2 max), which is used to assess prognosis and severity of chronic heart failure.
Echocardiography
Echocardiography is an ultrasound of the heart.
Electrocardiography
Electrocardiography is the process of producing an electrocardiogram. It is a graph of voltage versus time of the electrical activity of the heart using electrodes placed on the skin.
Holter monitor
A Holter monitor is a small, wearable device that keeps track of your heart rhythm. Your doctor may want you to wear a Holter monitor for one to two days. During that time, the device records all of your heartbeats.
MRI (cardiac)
Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging is a medical imaging technology for non-invasive assessment of the function and structure of the cardiovascular system.
Nuclear imaging (cardiac SPECT, MUGA)
A radionuclide cardiac perfusion study is a minimally invasive tool that uses small amounts of radioactive materials to create images of the heart’s blood flow, allowing physicians to evaluate the heart’s pumping action.
Stress testing
Most often, a stress test includes an electrocardiogram to measure your heart's electrical activity as you exercise on a treadmill or a stationary bicycle. Your doctor may also measure your blood oxygen level, blood pressure and heart rate. During the test, you will exercise for 10 to 15 minutes.
Tilt testing
The tilt table test (also called a head upright tilt test) records your blood pressure, heart rhythm and heart rate on a beat-by-beat basis as the table is tilted to different angles. The table always stays head-up.
The test shows how different positions affect your heart rate, heart rhythm and blood pressure. Your doctor uses this information to determine the cause of symptoms like light-headedness and fainting spells (syncope) and develop the best treatment plan for you.
Vascular screening program
Vascular disease prevents blood from flowing properly through the circulatory system. It involves the arteries that carry blood away from the heart to other parts of the body and the veins that carry blood back. Often, vascular disease has no apparent signs or symptoms and, as a result, is known as a silent disease. Vascular screening is a non-invasive, 10-minute test to detect silent vascular diseases that can lead to serious health problems and death. It screens for carotid artery disease, peripheral arterial disease and abdominal aortic aneurysms. Registered vascular technologists perform state-of-the-art screening in an accredited vascular laboratory, and a board-certified vascular surgeon reviews your results.
