CTH HeartScreen
Here you can learn valualbe information on what we are detecting and how everything works. Are we getting too technical? Give us a call or email and let's chat one-on-one where we can answer all of your questions.
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM)
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a disease in which the heart muscle (myocardium) becomes abnormally thick (hypertrophied). The thickened heart muscle can make it harder for the heart to pump blood. Did you know that Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is one of the most common inheritable cardiovascular diseases and is the most common cause of sudden cardiac arrest and sudden death in the young -- especially young athletes?
An echocardiography, part of the CTH HeartScreen process, is the most common tool used in the detection and treatment of HCM. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy often goes undiagnosed because many people with the disease have few, if any, symptoms and can lead normal lives with no significant problems. However, in some people with HCM, the thickened heart muscle can cause shortness of breath, chest pain or problems in the heart's electrical system, resulting in life-threatening abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias). Although HCM is associated with athletics, we know that all students are not particularly involved in sports. Our services are open to all students, regardless of sports participation.
About Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA)
SCA stands for Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Sudden cardiac arrest occurs suddenly and often without warning. Electrical problems in the heart cause a dangerously fast heart rate that interrupts blood flow. With pumping disrupted, the heart cannot pump blood to the body's vital organs. Within seconds, a person loses consciousness and has no pulse. SCA can lead to sudden cardiac death within minutes. Young athletes are more than twice as likely to experience SCD as young non-athletes. Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the leading cardiovascular cause of SCD (36%) in young athletes. The risk of SCD increases with age. Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SDA) is the leading cause of sudden death among young athletes.
Electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG)
An electrocardiogram, also known as ECG or EKG is a simple, painless test that detects and records your heart’s electrical activity of each heartbeat, but does not send any electrical pulses into the body; it only records the electrical impulses of the heart’s rhythm. With each heartbeat, an electrical wave is sent through the heart, which causes the muscle of the heart to squeeze the blood inside the heart out and relax to fill the heart with more blood.
An ECG can show how fast your heart is beating, whether the rhythm of your heartbeats is steady or irregular, and the strength and timing of the electrical impulses passing through each part of your heart. A doctor can determine how long the electrical wave takes to pass through the heart. Finding out how long a wave takes to travel from one part of the heart to the next shows if the electrical activity is normal or slow, fast or irregular. Second, by measuring the amount of electrical activity passing through the heart muscle, a cardiologist may be able to find out if parts of the heart are too large or are overworked. An ECG has no serious risks and does not hurt. ECGs don’t give off electrical charges such as shocks. You may develop a slight rash where the electrodes were attached to your skin. This rash usually goes away on its own without treatment.
Echocardiogram (Echo)
An echocardiogram (echo) is a test that uses high frequency sound waves (ultrasound) to make pictures of your heart. The test is also called echocardiography or diagnostic cardiac ultrasound. Echocardiography is a test that uses sound waves to produce live images of your heart. The image is an echocardiogram. This test allows your doctor to monitor how your heart and its valves are functioning. An echocardiogram is key in determining the health of the heart muscle. Capture The Heart uses ultrasound to reveal major heart defects, primarily HCM .
Taking an echocardiogram is painless. An echo ultrasound uses sound waves to create pictures of your heart’s chambers, valves, walls and the blood vessels (aorta, arteries, veins) attached to your heart. A probe called a transducer is passed over your chest. The probe produces sound waves that bounce off your heart and “echo” back to the probe. These waves are changed into pictures viewed on a video monitor. Taking an echocardiogram is painless and can’t harm you. At test time, the patient will be asked to lay on his/her left side on the exam table. The echocardiogram probe will be placed on the chest in a couple of different places. The sonographer will capture several different digital images of the heart. Echocardiograms are done by specially trained technologists. Our echo screenings take about 5 minutes. Each screening echocardiogram will be reviewed by a licensed, board-certified cardiologist. A screening report, along with a CD of any positive exam, will be provided to you for review by your personal physician.
CTH HeartScreen
At test time, the patient will be asked to lay on his/her left side on the exam table. The sonographer will capture several different digital images of the heart. All females will be scanned by a female sonographer or in the presence of a female assistant/chaperone. The female body is kept completely covered and the highest level of modesty is provided; males may be covered as they chose. The total test time for an echocardiogram screening is approximately 5-10 minutes. ECG’s are always performed by a female and take just a few minutes. A blood pressure check is also provided in the HeartSrceen. There may be some itchiness after the lead tabs are pulled off, but it goes away soon. Most do not feel a thing however.
OUR TESTS ARE PAINLESS
The CTH HeartScreen is completely painless and non-invasive. Give us a call today to learn more about how Capture The Heart can help you and your studnets. The call is free: (833) 764-3278.