Today, we’re lucky to have access to sophisticated medical screenings and tests that can help detect problems, or even allow us to get ahead of them, so we can be treated early and successfully.
Think mammograms for breast cancer, colonoscopies for colorectal cancer, vision tests for diseases like glaucoma, and a simple blood pressure check to determine whether our blood pressure is elevated — and to what extent.
Dr. Gurprit Sekhon believes that every part of you deserves the best care, and when you visit Nu Wave Medical Center for your annual wellness exam, she talks to you about any special tests you may need. One that she provides is an electrocardiogram, or EKG, which reveals important information about your heart health.
A tool like the EKG is a critical piece of your care, as it can allow Dr. Sekhon to diagnose a problem or closely manage one if you’ve already received a diagnosis.
An EKG test records the electrical activity of your heart and how it contracts and relaxes. It’s a pivotal tool for investigating a wide range of troubling heart symptoms, including chest pain, weakness, shortness of breath, heartbeat irregularities, or dizziness.
If you have a pacemaker, an implanted device that sends electrical pulses to your heart to help it beat normally, periodic EKGs are also important to get when you visit us.
Certain heart problems aren’t detectable unless you’re exercising, so sometimes an EKG is administered while you’re on a treadmill or pedaling a stationary bicycle — this is known as a stress test.
An EKG provides important answers to the puzzling and worrisome symptoms we described, and is likely to be the first test Dr. Sekhon administers if she suspects you have heart disease. The EKG test reveals:
An EKG also reveals whether you’re having — or have had — a heart attack.
This is a medical test that provides you and Dr. Sekhon with lots of “bang for the buck,” since it offers so much information about how your heart is functioning.
Fortunately, getting an EKG is a simple, quick (typically about 10 minutes), and painless experience. Dr. Sekhon just attaches some electrodes (sticky patches that are placed on your chest, arms, and legs), which are connected to wires that attach to the EKG machine.
The EKG machine records your heart’s electrical signals. The signals show up as waves on the EKG’s video monitor, and then this image is printed on paper.
During your EKG, you simply need to lie still, breathe normally, and refrain from talking.
If the electrodes you receive are going to be placed on a part of your body that has lots of hair on it — for example, on your chest if you’re a man — we may ask you to shave that area prior to your EKG.
If Dr. Sekhon notices anything abnormal when she interprets your EKG results, she may refer you to a cardiologist or advise further testing. Results may also indicate the need for lifestyle changes to improve your heart health, including increasing your exercise, improving stress management, lowering your cholesterol, and losing weight.
Nu Wave Medical Center can help you if you need to pursue weight loss, too, since we offer a medically supervised weight loss program that offers you all the education and support you need.
At Nu Wave Medical Center, your health is always our top priority. Call us at 850-493-6948 to schedule an appointment at our Panama City Beach, Florida, office.
