Normally the cardiac perfusion scan is used to measure the amount of blood in the person's heart muscle when at rest and also during exercise. Usually it is done to find out the reason for the chest pain. However it may also be done post a heart attack to check and see if the areas of the person's heart are getting inadequate blood or to help find out exactly how much of the heart muscle has really been damaged due to the heart attack. During the course of a scan, a camera is used to take pictures of the patient's heart. This is done post a special test medicine which is injected into the vein in the patient's arm. The tracer then travels through this blood and then into the heart muscle. When the tracer actually moves through the patient's heart muscle, there are areas that have a good blood flow and absorb the tracer. But areas that do not actually absorb tracer may possibly not be getting adequate blood or in some cases may have been actually damaged by a previous heart attack.
Before the cardiac perfusion is done, the patient needs to tell the doctor if they are currently taking any medicines. The patient may need to take the nitroglycerin during the test. . One should check with their doctor if they need to stop having any of their other medicines right before the test. They need to mention to the doctor if they are allergic to any particular medicines or anesthetics. Also the doctor needs to know if the patient is pregnant and also if she is breast-feeding. For those breast feeding it is recommended that they use formula and continue to throw out their breast milk for at least 1 to 2 days post the scan. One should not eat or drink for the 3 hours or more before the cardiac perfusion scan. If the person is having a stress scan, then they need to avoid tobacco, alcohol, caffeinated beverages, and any nonprescription medicines. This is required to be done for at least the 24 hours prior to the test. One should wear comfortable shoes and also loose shorts or even pants suitable for the exercise. Remember to remove all the jewelry before the test. One can always talk to their doctor about any of the concerns they may have regarding their need for the test or its risks or how the test will be done, and what these results may actually indicate.
Submitted by N S on April 1, 2010 at 06:03