While Swift referred to this as a “resting stress test,” she seems to be referring to what is actually called a nuclear stress test. This is often recommended in people who have unexplained fatigue or other signs of heart complications, according to Dr. Yu-Ming Ni, MD, a cardiologist and lipidologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA.Related: The One Thing to Do Every Single Day to Lower Inflammation In Your Arteries, According to Cardiologists
How the Nuclear Stress Test Works
The nuclear stress test without exercise involves giving a patient a medicine called a vasodilator, Dr. Ni says. “This dilates—widens—the heart arteries and it only lasts for about five to 10 minutes,” he explains. “This medication imitates exercise,” explains Dr. Lawrence Phillips, MD, director of nuclear cardiology at NYU Langone Heart.
The test can help doctors see if there is an area of the heart that isn’t getting enough blood flow, Dr. McClelland says. “If there is such an area present, it indicates to us that there may be a blockage in the artery going to that part of the heart,” she explains.
Doctors are hesitant to assign a specific age to whom should get this test, given that anyone can have heart health issues that need to be explored. But Dr. Ni says it starts to become more important once you enter midlife, especially if you have specific symptoms and risk factors.
Having chest pain, specifically in the middle or left side of the chest, shortness of breath, and nausea, especially when it’s related to exercise or exertion, can also be red flags to get a stress test, according to Dr. Phillips.
Dr. McClelland says the test should be ordered by a doctor after going over symptoms. “In general, if someone is having symptoms concerning for artery blockages or if they have other medical problems that can increase their risk of blockages—especially if they are going to be doing something where we know they will be under stress, like about to undergo surgery—we will order these tests,” she explains. “There is no specific age cut-off or group where we do or do not use this test as each patient situation is different.”
What Happens Next
If you have a resting stress test with abnormal findings, Dr. Kershner says that doctors will usually recommend cardiac catheterization. This is a procedure where a thin, flexible tube called a catheter is inserted into a blood vessel and guided to the heart to look inside, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI).
If you had a stress test done and you’re still having symptoms or risk factors for cardiovascular disease, doctors may recommend that you have it again in the future. “This varies from person to person,” she says. Still, there’s even more variation depending on how you feel. “Most of the time, we get these tests when people are having heart symptoms, so there is no set schedule where we get this test every X number of years,” Dr. McClelland says. However, Dr. Dawson adds that stress tests do a good job of predicting whether someone will have a cardiac event for up to two years after the test is done.
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Sources:
Nuclear Stress Test, U.S. National Library of MedicineDr. Dawn Warner Kershner, DO, a cardiologist with The Heart Center at Mercy in Baltimore, MarylandDr. Isla McClelland, MD, a cardiologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical CenterDr. Yu-Ming Ni, MD, a cardiologist and lipidologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CADr. Ragavendra Baliga, MBBS, a cardiologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical CenterDr. Lawrence Phillips, MD, director of nuclear cardiology at NYU Langone HeartDr. M. Scott Dawson, MD, a cardiologist at southern New Jersey's Cooper and Inspira Cardiac CareCardiac Catheterization, National Heart, Lung, and Blood InstituteHence then, the article about cardiologists are begging people with fatigue to do this one thing asap was published today ( ) and is available on Parade ( Saudi Arabia ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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