An echocardiogram is a diagnostic test used to check the heart for problems related to its functioning. It is a test that is conducted on a patient while the patient is in a stationary position. An electrocardiogram is an electrical impulse based test which measures statistics like the heartbeat and blood pressure. The combination of these two tests is used to analyze the health of a patient’s heart and make a diagnosis about the condition that is affecting the patient.
The human body has the remarkable ability to function at an optimum level of metabolism as the situation demands. This means that when the body is at rest, the metabolism is enough to maintain this period of rest whereas when the body is in action, the metabolism is enough to provide energy to sustain the effort required to perform the actions being performed. The heart is a complex organ which has several different parts, each of which can develop defects. Even the blood supply through the coronary artery system can develop defects. Normally, when the body is resting, the heart and other organs are functioning at a low level of their capability because there is no demand for their effort. When the heart is stressed; or under pressure, then one might notice damage or an abnormality in the condition. This is because the rate of beating and the pressure exerted with each beat is increased when the heart is under load. The rate of blood flow required to maintain the heart muscle is also increased during load. All these factors combine to provide the ideal situation for any abnormality to show up.
An echocardiogram cannot be performed when the person is undergoing stress because this stress is usually being experienced as part of an exercise routine on a treadmill. A treadmill test after an echo is a procedure used to understand the functioning of the heart before and after stress has occurred. The initial echocardiogram and electrocardiogram give some base line readings about the condition of the heart. After this, the subject is made to run on a treadmill with the electrocardiogram connected. During this period if there is any abnormality, it should show up in the readings. After this, the patient is immediately made to undergo a fresh echocardiogram test. This will identify, clearly and without doubt, any abnormality, as the heart continues to beat heavily for a minute or two after heavy exercise.