A lot of people encounter heart problems. Some, unfortunately, perish from this traitor of a disease. It can come up or creep up on you if you are not alert with your symptoms and risks. The Health University of Utah summarizes some risk factors and a short description of what a cardiologist does.
Here are some things that require a cardiology checkup. If you have any of these, make sure you get in touch with the nearest center of cardiology in places like Orem.
Chest Discomfort or Pain or Palpitations
A classic sign, chest discomfort or palpitation, warrants the need for lab work. It can be an ECG, 2D echo, or the latest treadmill stress test called dobutamine echo stress test. If you feel intermittent chest discomfort or pain, a cardiologist should check if you need to pay attention to your circulatory system. This pain can indicate a worsening heart condition. Make sure you don’t ignore early signs like this to avoid a full-blown disaster.
Diabetes, Kidney Problems, or High Blood Pressure
The whole body is an interrelated set of systems. What affects one system can affect another. The heart is susceptible to problems when it is paired with other health issues like diabetes, kidney problems, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol levels. Make sure you have the necessary specialists on your side when you need to have your vital signs and lab work checked.
Gum and Frequent Tonsil Problems
It’s not widely advertised, but gum disease is a precursor to heart ailments. If you also have tonsilitis more than five times a year, you are at a higher risk for heart disease. It’s best to have cardiology lab work done when you have these things to prevent a more significant problem from developing.
Pregnancy Complications
Gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, and other pregnancy complications can be stressful. You will need more than an obstetrician and gynecologist to help you out with the management of the pregnancy. Get a cardiologist on board if you have special conditions that require close monitoring.
Abnormal Laboratory Results
If you have something irregular on your routine lab work, get yourself checked. For example, chest x-rays can reveal enlarged hearts or calcification in the arteries of the heart. Your annual ECG from your place of work can also show hemiblocks or blockages that need attention. Make sure to have an expert interpret these lab results.
Trauma, Severe Anxiety, or Grief
There is a thing called the heartbreak or broken heart syndrome, more formally known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy. It’s where the heart has trouble regularly beating because of tremendous pain or heartache. Widows and people who have undergone a painful or sudden loss are at a higher risk of contracting this temporary condition. It will usually need a treadmill or dobutamine echo stress test to rule out. It can lead to some short to medium-term failure of the heart if left untreated.
Manhattan Cardiology lists some things you can expect from a cardiology checkup. It would help if you opted for preventing a severe disease than putting off a primary or confirmatory checkup with a cardiologist at the last minute.