Despite doctors’ constant advice to lose weight, exercise more, mind your cholesterol, and take your statins, cardiovascular disease is still the No. 1 killer in the United States and, indeed, in the world. Good advice aside, more and more women and men in the United States develop preventable risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including obesity and diabetes.
The risk of death due to a cardiovascular issue increases with both age and obesity. If you’re aging, overweight, or have a personal or family history of cardiovascular disease, your doctor may recommend a routine electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) as part of your annual physical.
Expert and caring internist Dr. Kimberly Bolling believes that knowledge is power. Although you may be intimidated by the idea of an EKG at our Bowie, Maryland, office, once you get your results, you and Dr. Bolling have important insights into your heart health.
What does a routine, painless, and fast EKG reveal about your heart health, and why is that important? Read on and see.
Does your heart sometimes skip a beat (even when you’re not looking at your Valentine)? An occasional skip, palpitation, or irregular beat probably isn’t a problem.
However, if your heartbeats are always irregular, or if your palpitations have increased, an EKG can determine whether you have a condition called arrhythmia. You may have a type of arrhythmia called tachycardia (i.e., fast heartbeat), bradycardia (i.e., slow heartbeat), or have erratic beats.
To normalize your heartbeat, Dr. Bolling may recommend lifestyle changes or medications. Even cutting down caffeine and improving sleep hygiene may help.
If you had chest pain, arm pain, or jaw pain, you may worry that you had a heart attack. Luckily, an EKG is a fast and easy way to determine if you did, so you can relax or take action.
The EKG reveals the electrical patterns in your heart. If they’re abnormal, that could indicate that you had a heart attack at some point in the past. It can identify almost half of prior heart attacks. It can also be used to rule out a heart attack. An EKG can even identify electrolyte abnormalities that are associated with increased risk for a heart attack.
To get a completely accurate picture, Dr. Bolling may recommend other tests, too. If you feel that you had a heart attack, it’s best to know for sure.
Although an EKG measures the electrical waves that your heart produces when it beats, it can tell Dr. Bolling about the health of your blood vessels, too. Your heart’s electrical activity is altered if your blood vessels are damaged due to atherosclerosis.
If your blood isn’t flowing freely to your heart, you may have a condition called ischemia. Dr. Bolling may recommend dietary and lifestyle changes or medications.
The electrical wave forms recorded by the EKG give Dr. Bolling a lot of important information about your cardiovascular system’s health. In fact, an EKG can even reveal structural abnormalities within your heart muscle.
For instance, an EKG can alert Dr. Bolling if you have an enlarged heart. You may even have a congenital (i.e., born with) heart condition that you didn’t know about. The more information you have about your heart, the better choices you can make to keep it as healthy as possible.
If you have chest pain, you may be afraid that you’ve had or will have a heart attack. An EKG quickly tells your doctor if cardiovascular abnormalities are the reason for your pain. If not, she can then explore other options.
If you’re taking medication or if you have a pacemaker, your doctor uses an EKG to evaluate how well they’re working. Dr. Bolling may suggest an EKG if you’ve started a new medication but are still having symptoms, or if you have symptoms despite the use of a pacemaker.
If you’re an athlete or work at a stressful job — such as a pilot or soldier — an EKG makes sure that your heart is strong enough to take the pressures of your occupation. If you’re about to undergo surgery, your surgeon might also request an EKG to ensure you’re healthy enough to withstand the trauma of the operation and general anesthesia.
Add an EKG to your wellness routine by calling us today at 301-352-0090. You can also click here to fill out our handy appointment form.
