All of our office locations have a non-invasive lab where we perform stress echocardiograms, echocardiograms, treadmill testing, Holter monitoring, Event monitoring, and Vascular screening. Our Santa Ana location has a nuclear testing/imaging system where we perform Lexiscan, Excercise Cardiolite and Dobutamine testing. The Santa Ana office also has External Counterpulsation (ECP) therapy for patients with chronic stable angina, who are not candidates for intervention or re-vascularization.
Below are descriptions of several of the tests and services we offer.
Lexiscan Stress Cardiolite (aka. Sestamibi)
Lexiscan injection is a prescription drug given through an IV line that increases blood flow through the arteries of the heart. Lexiscan is given to patients when they are unable to exercise adequately for a stress test. Lexiscan is used in a myocardial perfusion imaging study, a non-invasive imaging test that shows how well blood flows through your heart muscle. This study can show areas of the heart muscle that aren’t getting enough blood flow.
Exercise Stress Cardiolite (aka. Sestamibi)
Myocardial perfusion scan with exercise. A myocardial perfusion scan with exercise is used to determine what areas of the heart muscle (myocardium) demonstrate decreased blood flow during exercise. This is done by injecting a radionuclide (thallium or technetium) into a vein in the arm or hand during exercise. After the radionuclide has been injected into a vein and has circulated through the blood stream, a special machine called a gamma camera takes pictures of the heart while the person lies still on a table. This scanning usually lasts about 30 minutes.
Dobutamine Stress Cardiolite (aka. Sestamibi)
For patients who are unable to exercise, a medication called Dobutamine will be used to make your heart gradually increase as if you were exercising. This will be combined with a nuclear imaging material that is injected into the bloodstream and enables the Nuclear Medicine Technologist to take images/pictures of your heart. These images/pictures will help to determine if there is an area of your heart muscle that is not receiving enough blood due to narrowed or diseased arteries in your heart. The nuclear imaging material is not a “dye.” It is used routinely and has been shown to be safe.
