- Laboratory tests
- Chest X-Ray
- Electrocardiography
- Holter Monitoring
- Echocardiography
- Doppler Echo
- Treadmill Test
- Bicycle Ergometry
- Angiography
Cardiovascular disease is an enigma. It is the world’s leading cause of deaths worldwide, yet it is largely preventable, and can be diagnosed with speed and precision.
A century ago seems like a lifetime when discussing the diagnosis of cardiovascular disease, when physicians relied on palpation, percussion and auscultation.
Palpation involved assessing temperature, blood vessel pulsation and touch. Percussion is the tapping on surface area of the body and assessing the reverberating sounds. Auscultation involves listening to the sounds produced by the heart in to determine if the parts are working properly.
Today, modern medicine, through technology, provides practitioners with a wide range of sophisticated tools and systems that markedly improve the diagnostic process, thereby reducing the incidence of premature death and improving the quality of life.
Nevertheless, the first stage in diagnosing cardiovascular disease is unchanged. Diagnosis begins with a patient survey and basic examination. A patient’s history, family history and current complaints, is followed by a routine examination (Blood pressure, pulse rate and listening to heart sounds with the aid of a phonendoscope). The next stage involves a more thorough examination that employs relevant modern diagnostic methods.
The diagnosis of cardiovascular disorders is divided into several groups:
- Laboratory tests:
- Complete Blood Count
- Biochemical Blood Test;
- Chest X-Ray;
- Noninvasive tests and procedures (No body penetrations, incisions or injections):
- Electrocardiography and Holter monitoring;
- Echocardiography and Doppler echocardiography;
- Cardiac stress tests: Treadmill Test and Bicycle Ergometry;
- Invasive tests and procedures (Some entry into the patient’s body) :
