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Echocardiogram
An echocardiogram (ECG) is a device that uses sound waves to create moving images of the heart. It utilizes an instrument called a transducer, which rests above the heart and sends high-frequency waves toward the heart. The waves reflect back based on the electrical impulses form the heart, and the ECG machine converts the electrical activity into images which it displays on a monitor (1).
The test is performed by a technician trained in the operation of the device, known as a sonographer, and the results of the test are interpreted by a doctor. If necessary, the sonographer may inject a small amount of material through an IV that will allow a clearer image of the heart to appear on the monitor (1).
If the echocardiogram is inconclusive because of visual obscurity, the doctor may order a transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE). In a TEE, the patient's throat is first anesthetized, and then the sonographer places a scope down the patient's throat and esophagus. The scope has an ultrasonic device at its end, and this device is positioned near the lower part of the esophagus, allowing for a more accurate image of the heart to be obtained by the transducer (1). Regardless of the whether a standard ECG or a TEE is performed, the test involves sound waves and no harmful radiation, so there is no concern regarding the potential to harm healthy cells as there is in an x-ray.
An ECG is most often used to test for heart disease or other common heart conditions, though ECGs are also used to help screen for other conditions, such as pulmonary disease. This is because some diseases of the lung, including cancers like mesothelioma, can have associated cardiac symptoms that can be identified by the ECG (2).
- "Echocardiogram." From MedLinePlus.com. Available: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003869.htm (Accessed July 23, 2007).
- Wadler, S., MD, et al. (May, 1986) "Cardiac abnormalities in patients with diffuse malignant pleural mesothelioma." Cancer, Volume 58, Issue 12, Pages 2744 - 2750.