Thallium stress test is an electrocardiographic test that measures the ability of the heart to react to external stress in an appropriate clinical setting. The stress reaction is triggered by exercise or by direct intravenous injection of l-carnitine or l-glutamic acid. A patient is placed under both medical and physiological stress conditions and the results are recorded. The patient is then asked to perform various activities under stress conditions. The test helps in evaluating the functioning of the heart in different types of situations and the clinical importance of this procedure is immense. It also helps in evaluating the kidney, liver and pancreas functioning under similar stressful conditions.
The thallium stress test procedure is done under the observation of two medical practitioners, one on one. Before the examination takes place, the cardiologist or the physiatrist who performs the diagnostic examination asks for information from the patient regarding the type of exercise he undertakes, whether he is a vegetarian or not and whether he is under any medication or not. Further information like whether he has taken up a regular physical activity or not, the frequency of exercise and his diet are collected. In addition, the patient is asked about the medications he takes and the quantities taken at rest and during exercise. Taking all these factors into consideration, the physician performs the thallium stress test and gets results. After gathering the diagnostic information, the physician explains the diagnostic procedure and asks the patient to do specific post exercise activities.
During the thallium stress test, the patient is requested to perform exercises while sitting, lying down or standing. The duration of exercise needs to be determined by the physician. For the purpose of myocardial perfusion imaging, the nuclear device known as a catheter is inserted into the coronary artery that is narrowed via balloon angioplasty. A large quantity of nuclear fuel is then infused into the narrowed coronary artery, which causes contractions of the myocardial muscle that raises the blood flow rate.
Due to the increase in the heart muscle contractions, a rise in the blood pressure is noted along with other significant changes in the functioning of the heart muscles and coronary arteries. This leads to a marked decrease in the blood flow to the myocardium. The use of a thallium stress test provides important information in this regard. The results of this test can help in determining the need for treatment of myocardial ischemia as well as in identifying those patients who are at risk of developing heart disease in the future.
During the thallium stress test, the physician also asks you to perform some simple exercises. These include resting picturesque, bending and flexing of the wrist, arms as well as the abdomen and back. By performing such exercise, blood pressure is also measured continuously for approximately 15 minutes. This way, the physicians can evaluate the changing state of your heart beat with periodic breaks. They can also monitor whether you are getting enough oxygen during the exercise session.
There are many types of thallium stress tests that are usually performed in a medical clinic. The first one is called chest pain observation and this is done when the physician feels some mild to moderate discomfort in your chest area. Patients with mild heart failure often do not feel any discomfort. On the other hand, those patients with mild heart problems often feel chest pain accompanied by palpitations and irregular heartbeats.
Another type of thallium stress test is called nuclear medicine transfer. Nuclear medicine transfer is basically a non-invasive way of monitoring the progress of a patient’s heart during a heart attack. It is typically carried out using contrast dye coupled with radioisotope. The nuclear medicine transfer procedure will depend on the extent of your heart condition. This is why, it is best to be checked by a cardiologist for your particular condition. Your cardiologist will use the information obtained from the nuclear medicine transfer test for pre-arranged thallium prescription.
Although there are many types of cardiac imaging available today, no thallium stress test or echo stress test can be considered as 100% accurate. However, it can be used to determine whether or not you have certain heart conditions or to spot the progress of heart attacks. Thallium imaging may be used to identify the progress of heart disease in elderly individuals as well as those suffering from other cardiac problems.