Reasons why the test is performed

This procedure is performed to evaluate the valves and chambers of the heart in a noninvasive manner. The echocardiogram allows doctors to diagnose, assess and monitor:

- Murmurs
- Abnormal heart valves
- The heart’s pumping function for people with heart failure
- Myocardial damage in patients who have had heart attacks
- Infection in the sac around the heart (pericarditis)
- Infection in or around the heart valves (endocarditis)
- The source of a blood clot or emboli after stroke or transient ischemic attack
- Congenital heart disease
- Atrial fibrillation
- Pulmonary Hypertension Read the full story

Definition

It is a test that uses sound waves to create a moving picture of the heart. The picture is much more detailed than plain radiography and does not involve exposure to radiation.

Alternative Names

Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE); echocardiography transthoracic; Doppler ultrasound of the heart surface; echocardiogram Read the full story

What are the symptoms?

Mild case of myocarditis may not cause symptoms. That person may be fever, chest pain and extreme fatigue, as if he had a bad cold or the flu. Some people have an irregular heart rhythm (arrhythmia) or difficulty breathing.

Usually, a mild case of myocarditis will go without leaving permanent damage. severe cases can not be diagnosed until the person has no symptoms of heart failure. Even severe cases can disappear without warning, but these cases usually results in permanent damage and serious irreversible heart muscle.

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