Echocardiogram (Echo Test): Procedure, Normal Results, Types & What to Expect

An echocardiogram, or echo test, is an ultrasound of the heart that shows how strongly your heart pumps and whether the valves open and close properly. The scan involves no needles or radiation.

The echo test is often recommended by the best cardiologist in Delhi NCR to ensure the proper functioning of your heart before ordering other diagnostic tests.

Read on to know all about Echocardiogram, the normal results, types and what to expect. 

What Is an Echocardiogram and Why Is It Done?

The echocardiogram test takes echoes from the heart and sends it to the doctor who will see the heart’s chambers function and valves closing and opening on the screen.

Your doctor may ask for an echo test if:

• Chest pain or breathlessness is bothering you.
• Your heart races or flutters for no proper reason.
• Your feet or ankles look puffy by evening.
• Someone hears a murmur, an extra whooshing sound, in your heartbeat or your child’s.
• You’ve had high BP for years, or your ECG showed something unusual.

Noticing one or more of these signs is a good reason to book an appointment with a cardiologist doctor near me. 

Types of Echocardiogram

There are 5 types of echocardiogram: 2D Echo, Doppler Echo, Stress Echo, Transoesophageal Echo, Fetal Echo. 

• 2D Echo (Transthoracic Echo): The standard test, where a probe moves over your chest.
• Doppler Echo: Tracks blood flow and picks up leaky valves, usually in the same sitting.
• Stress Echo: Compares heart images at rest with images after exercise or a heart-speeding medicine.
• Transoesophageal Echo (TEE): After mild sedation, a thin probe goes down the food pipe to get clearer pictures.
• Fetal Echo: Done during pregnancy to check the baby’s heart.

The doctor decides which echo to use based on your symptoms, as each type looks at the heart in a different way. 

What to Expect Before an Echocardiogram?

• You can eat and drink as usual and keep taking your regular medicines unless your doctor suggests anything else. 
• Wear a two-piece outfit, since you’ll need to uncover your chest. 
• Bring your old heart reports, ECGs and medicine list. 
• If you’re taking an elderly parent, go in with them.

A TEE test needs a few hours of fasting and someone to take you home. Before a stress echo, check with your doctor about heart or BP medicines on the test day.

Echocardiogram Test: What Happens During and After a Test?

A standard 2D echo takes about 30 to 45 minutes. A stress echo or TEE needs more time, about 1 to 2 hours, to allow for exercise or recovery from sedation. 

• The procedure will be performed while you lie on your left side with few ECG patches placed on your chest.
• The technician will apply cold gel on your chest, and after that, he will move a small probe on your chest skin.
• You may hear a loud sound produced by blood flowing through the heart.
• At the end of the test, the technician will clean your chest of the gel.

In case of TEE test, the patient must stay in the recuperation area until the effect of anesthesia wears off. Echo reports are often ready the same day.

How Do Echocardiogram Normal Results Look?

A normal echo report usually shows:

• Left ventricle size: 4.2 to 5.8 cm (men), 3.8 to 5.2 cm (women)
• Wall thickness: 0.6 to 1.0 cm
• Valves: Open fully with no significant leak
• Lung pressure (PASP): 35 mmHg or less
• Fluid around the heart: None or a trace

Reference ranges vary slightly between labs, so your doctor reads the numbers alongside your symptoms.

Normal Ejection Fraction Range