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Types
Our Approach for Stress Tests
If you have symptoms of coronary artery disease (CAD), we offer several types of stress tests to help diagnose the condition. Our comprehensive stress testing combines advanced equipment with experienced care providers to produce detailed results for precise treatment planning of heart disease.
Our doctors and imaging technologists also use stress tests to monitor your heart health, evaluate the effectiveness of treatment, and assess your ability to exercise after a heart attack or surgery.
WHAT WE OFFER YOU FOR STRESS TESTS
- Nationally recognized expertise, with skilled cardiologists who have extensive experience in reading and interpreting stress tests and imaging test results
- Precise diagnosis options that combine the latest stress test equipment with the expertise of our experienced doctors and imaging technologists
- Personalized care through a variety of advanced options for stress tests that accommodate your abilities and provide high-quality results
If you are a new patient and want to request and appointment or need help finding a doctor, please call 650-723-6459, Option 3.
If you are a returning patient, call 650-723-6459, Option 2, to request an appointment.
What Is a Stress Test?
Types of Stress Tests
We recommend different types of stress tests depending on your overall health and your symptoms. Our doctors and imaging specialists have expertise in performing stress tests and interpreting the results.
Cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET)
This comprehensive test evaluates how well your heart and lungs work together to deliver oxygen-rich blood to your body. It also shows how well your muscles use oxygen as you exercise at increasing levels. A CPET can assess:
- Reasons for shortness of breath
- Level of fitness and ability to exercise, especially after a heart attack or heart surgery
- Lung function
A CPET is similar to an exercise stress test but also measures lung function, including:
- The amount of oxygen your body uses during exercise
- The amount of carbon dioxide you produce
- Your breathing pattern
We use this test not only to identify many types of heart and lung conditions, but also to:
- Monitor people who already have these conditions and check disease progression
- Measure how well treatments are working
- Determine whether exercise limitations are due to a heart or a lung problem
Exercise stress test
This test uses an EKG during exercise to evaluate blood flow to your heart. We perform an exercise stress test while you are exercising on a treadmill or stationary bicycle at a gradually increasing rate. We use this test to raise your heart rate so that we can detect heart problems affecting blood flow.
An exercise stress test measures only the electrical activity of your heart, not lung function like a CPET. We use this test to:
- Determine safe exercise levels after a heart attack or heart surgery
- Diagnose and determine the severity of CAD and other types of heart disease
- Diagnose an arrhythmia
- Find the cause of symptoms that appear only during exercise, such as shortness of breath, fainting, or irregular heartbeat
- Guide treatment planning, such as medication, cardiac catheterization (minimally invasive heart procedures), surgery, or transplantation
Pharmacologic stress test
This stress test evaluates blood flow to your heart using an EKG but does not involve any physical activity. We recommend a pharmacologic stress test for people who are unable to exercise because of physical limitations such as arthritis, joint or back conditions, injury, or disability. In this test, you receive medication to stimulate your heart and cause it to beat harder and faster, as if you were exercising.
We use a pharmacologic stress test to:
- Determine safe levels of physical activity if you have had a heart attack or heart surgery
- Diagnose many types of heart disease and determine their severity
- Guide decisions on treatment options, such as medication, cardiac catheterization (minimally invasive heart procedures), surgery, or transplantation
- Assess how well your treatment is working to increase blood flow to the heart
Nuclear stress test
This type of stress test includes radioactive dye and imaging studies to show blood flow to the heart, both at rest and when your heart rate is elevated. As with other types of stress tests, we record your heart’s electrical activity with an EKG.
During a nuclear stress test, you receive an injection of radioactive dye through an intravenous (IV) line. The dye travels through your bloodstream and your heart. While you are still at rest, we scan your heart with a special camera that picks up the radioactive dye to show blood flow to and through your heart.
For the second part of the test, you begin exercising on a treadmill or stationary bicycle. If you are unable to exercise, we can give you medication to increase your heart rate. We then scan more images of your heart to capture blood flow to the heart during increased activity.
Nuclear stress tests show which parts of your heart are receiving enough blood and which are not. The scans provide details that can indicate heart disease and its severity and show tissue damage from a previous heart attack.
What to Expect
A stress test may be performed on an outpatient basis or as part of your stay in a hospital. Procedures may vary depending on condition and your doctor's practices.
Before
During
After
Before the Procedure
The doctor or a nurse will explain the procedure and offer the opportunity for patients to ask questions about the procedure. Patients will then be asked to sign a consent form that gives permission to perform the test. Read the form carefully and ask questions if something is not clear.
Patients should notify the doctor about all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements that they are taking.
During the test, we monitor the electrical activity of the heart and we ask patients to breathe through a face mask. This allows us to monitor oxygen uptake. At the beginning and end of the test, we do an ultrasound (echocardiogram) to look at the heart.
If patients are physically unable to walk/jog on a treadmill, please alert the staff to allow for an alternative (e.g. switch to a cardiac stress test using a drug). Once on the treadmill, the speed and incline will be gradually increased until symptoms or fatigue, pain, or cardiac abnormality occurs.
- You will be asked to fast for a few hours before the procedure. You should not smoke for two hours prior to the procedure. Do not have any caffeine or caffeine products for 24 hours
- If you are pregnant or suspect that you may be pregnant, you should notify your doctor
- Notify your doctor of all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements that you are taking
Exercise Stress Test
We estimate how much exercise we think the patient will be able to perform, then we grade the treadmill so that the patient will reach this level in about 10 minutes.
- Wear flat shoes that are comfortable for walking and loose-fitting pants or shorts. Women should wear a short-sleeved top that fastens in the front for ease of attaching the ECG electrodes to the chest
- The area(s) where the electrodes are to be placed may be shaved
- The doctor may request other specific preparations depending on certain medical conditions
Drug stress test
Before the stress test, fasting may be required. The doctor will give instructions as to how long patients should withhold food and/or liquids. In some cases, cigarettes and caffeinated beverages, such as coffee, tea, and cola, may be restricted several hours before testing.
Notify the doctor if:
- Patients are allergic to or sensitive to medications or latex;
- Patients are pregnant or suspect they may be pregnant; or
- Patients have a pacemaker
Based upon the medical condition, the doctor may request some other specific preparation.
During the Procedure
The doctor or a nurse will explain the procedure and offer the opportunity for patients to ask questions about the procedure. Patients will then be asked to sign a consent form that gives permission to perform the test. Read the form carefully and ask questions if something is not clear.
Patients should notify the doctor about all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements that they are taking.
During the test, we monitor the electrical activity of the heart and we ask patients to breathe through a face mask. This allows us to monitor oxygen uptake. At the beginning and end of the test, we do an ultrasound (echocardiogram) to look at the heart.
If patients are physically unable to walk/jog on a treadmill, please alert the staff to allow for an alternative (e.g. switch to a cardiac stress test using a drug). Once on the treadmill, the speed and incline will be gradually increased until symptoms or fatigue, pain, or cardiac abnormality occurs.
- Patients will be asked to fast for a few hours before the procedure. Patients should not smoke for two hours prior to the procedure. Do not have any caffeine or caffeine products for 24 hours
- If patients are pregnant or suspect that they may be pregnant, they should notify their doctor
- Patient should notify the doctor of all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements they are taking
Exercise Stress Test
We estimate how much exercise we think the patient will be able to perform, then we grade the treadmill so that the patient will reach this level in about 10 minutes.
- Wear flat shoes that are comfortable for walking and loose-fitting pants or shorts. Women should wear a short-sleeved top that fastens in the front for ease of attaching the ECG electrodes to the chest
- The area(s) where the electrodes are to be placed may be shaved
- The doctor may request other specific preparations depending on certain medical conditions
Drug stress test
Before the stress test, fasting may be required. The doctor will give instructions as to how long patients should withhold food and/or liquids. In some cases, cigarettes and caffeinated beverages, such as coffee, tea, and cola, may be restricted several hours before testing.
Notify the doctor if:
- Patients are allergic to or sensitive to medications or latex;
- Patients are pregnant or suspect they may be pregnant; or
- Patients have a pacemaker
Based upon the medical condition, the doctor may request some other specific preparation.
After the Procedure
Patients should be able to resume normal diet and activities, unless the doctor instructs differently. Generally, there is no special care following an exercise or drug stress test.
The doctor may give additional or alternate instructions after the procedure, depending on the patient’s needs.
After an exercise stress test, patients may feel tired for several hours or longer after the procedure, particularly if they do not normally exercise. Otherwise, patients should feel normal within a few hours after the procedure, if not sooner. If fatigue lasts longer than a day, notify the doctor.
Contact the doctor ifs any of the following signs or symptoms occur:
- Chest pain
- Dizziness
- Fainting
- Shortness of breath
Before the Procedure
The doctor or a nurse will explain the procedure and offer the opportunity for patients to ask questions about the procedure. Patients will then be asked to sign a consent form that gives permission to perform the test. Read the form carefully and ask questions if something is not clear.
Patients should notify the doctor about all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements that they are taking.
During the test, we monitor the electrical activity of the heart and we ask patients to breathe through a face mask. This allows us to monitor oxygen uptake. At the beginning and end of the test, we do an ultrasound (echocardiogram) to look at the heart.
If patients are physically unable to walk/jog on a treadmill, please alert the staff to allow for an alternative (e.g. switch to a cardiac stress test using a drug). Once on the treadmill, the speed and incline will be gradually increased until symptoms or fatigue, pain, or cardiac abnormality occurs.
- You will be asked to fast for a few hours before the procedure. You should not smoke for two hours prior to the procedure. Do not have any caffeine or caffeine products for 24 hours
- If you are pregnant or suspect that you may be pregnant, you should notify your doctor
- Notify your doctor of all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements that you are taking
Exercise Stress Test
We estimate how much exercise we think the patient will be able to perform, then we grade the treadmill so that the patient will reach this level in about 10 minutes.
- Wear flat shoes that are comfortable for walking and loose-fitting pants or shorts. Women should wear a short-sleeved top that fastens in the front for ease of attaching the ECG electrodes to the chest
- The area(s) where the electrodes are to be placed may be shaved
- The doctor may request other specific preparations depending on certain medical conditions
Drug stress test
Before the stress test, fasting may be required. The doctor will give instructions as to how long patients should withhold food and/or liquids. In some cases, cigarettes and caffeinated beverages, such as coffee, tea, and cola, may be restricted several hours before testing.
Notify the doctor if:
- Patients are allergic to or sensitive to medications or latex;
- Patients are pregnant or suspect they may be pregnant; or
- Patients have a pacemaker
Based upon the medical condition, the doctor may request some other specific preparation.
close Before
During the Procedure
The doctor or a nurse will explain the procedure and offer the opportunity for patients to ask questions about the procedure. Patients will then be asked to sign a consent form that gives permission to perform the test. Read the form carefully and ask questions if something is not clear.
Patients should notify the doctor about all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements that they are taking.
During the test, we monitor the electrical activity of the heart and we ask patients to breathe through a face mask. This allows us to monitor oxygen uptake. At the beginning and end of the test, we do an ultrasound (echocardiogram) to look at the heart.
If patients are physically unable to walk/jog on a treadmill, please alert the staff to allow for an alternative (e.g. switch to a cardiac stress test using a drug). Once on the treadmill, the speed and incline will be gradually increased until symptoms or fatigue, pain, or cardiac abnormality occurs.
- Patients will be asked to fast for a few hours before the procedure. Patients should not smoke for two hours prior to the procedure. Do not have any caffeine or caffeine products for 24 hours
- If patients are pregnant or suspect that they may be pregnant, they should notify their doctor
- Patient should notify the doctor of all medications (prescription and over-the-counter) and herbal supplements they are taking
Exercise Stress Test
We estimate how much exercise we think the patient will be able to perform, then we grade the treadmill so that the patient will reach this level in about 10 minutes.
- Wear flat shoes that are comfortable for walking and loose-fitting pants or shorts. Women should wear a short-sleeved top that fastens in the front for ease of attaching the ECG electrodes to the chest
- The area(s) where the electrodes are to be placed may be shaved
- The doctor may request other specific preparations depending on certain medical conditions
Drug stress test
Before the stress test, fasting may be required. The doctor will give instructions as to how long patients should withhold food and/or liquids. In some cases, cigarettes and caffeinated beverages, such as coffee, tea, and cola, may be restricted several hours before testing.
Notify the doctor if:
- Patients are allergic to or sensitive to medications or latex;
- Patients are pregnant or suspect they may be pregnant; or
- Patients have a pacemaker
Based upon the medical condition, the doctor may request some other specific preparation.
close During
After the Procedure
Patients should be able to resume normal diet and activities, unless the doctor instructs differently. Generally, there is no special care following an exercise or drug stress test.
The doctor may give additional or alternate instructions after the procedure, depending on the patient’s needs.
After an exercise stress test, patients may feel tired for several hours or longer after the procedure, particularly if they do not normally exercise. Otherwise, patients should feel normal within a few hours after the procedure, if not sooner. If fatigue lasts longer than a day, notify the doctor.
Contact the doctor ifs any of the following signs or symptoms occur:
- Chest pain
- Dizziness
- Fainting
- Shortness of breath
close After