Additional Diagnostic Heart Tests
Tilt-Table Testing
In tilt-table testing, a patient is secured to a table that slowly tilts from an upright position to a horizontal position, until the patient lays flat on his or her back. Blood pressure and heart rate are monitored throughout the test to help determine whether a pacemaker is needed.
CT Scans
Occasionally, Computed Tomography (CT) scans are performed to help diagnose a heart condition. CT scans can show calcium build-up and blockages in the heart’s arteries. In addition to being used as a diagnostic tool after a patient displays signs and symptoms of illness, CT scans can also be performed as screening tools, often called Body Scans to detect heart disease before symptoms arise.
Learn more about John C. Lincoln's Body Scan facilities, as well as the difference between a CT scan and an MRI, here.
Chest X-rays
X-rays, one of the first diagnostic imaging techniques to be invented, can still play an important role in detecting heart conditions. Chest X-rays can help diagnose congestive heart failure. They can also show infections in the sac around the heart, enlargement of the heart and even sometimes calcified heart valves or coronary arteries.
X-rays, which use a small amount of radiation to create images of the body, are quick and painless.