Cardiac stress tests

Please allow at least two hours for checking in, setting up equipment and changing. The test itself takes about one hour. To prepare for the test:

• Have only a light snack in the 2-3 hours before the test (e.g. toast, cookies, bagel, sandwich or some fruit)
• Bring comfortable shoes and shorts or pants that are easy for walking
• Arrive 10 minutes before your appointment time to check in
• Bring a list of ALL medications you are taking, photo identification and your BC Services Card (or BC Care Card)
• Be sure you allow 2 hours for the test, from beginning to end

If you're unable to exercise we will give you a medicine called dobutamine. This will result in a higher pulse and blood pressure. We will give it through an intravenous line. The medicine will slowly increase your pulse and blood pressure. The cardiologist and specially trained health professionals will constantly watch you. They will also check your vital signs. We will take an ECG (heart tracing) and perform an echocardiogram during the test. You will likely feel a slight headache, nausea (feeling sick to your stomach), anxious or shaky.

The Dobutamine stress test itself usually takes about 1 hour to complete. Please plan on 2 hours for the whole thing, including registering, changing clothes, and setting up the equipment.

• Do not eat any food for 2 hours before the test
• Take your regular medicines at their usual time with a small amount of water. You can have a light breakfast if your test is scheduled later in the morning (after 11 AM). If you have a test scheduled for the early afternoon, make sure to have a regular breakfast and a very light lunch.
• If you have diabetes, follow your regular eating and medicine schedule
• If you have specific questions about your medicines for that day, please ask your family doctor. You can also ask the cardiologist (heart doctor) who referred you.
• Dress so that you can take off all your clothes from the waist up. We will give you a gown. We will clean and lightly rub small patches of skin on your chest, arms, and legs. This will make sure the electrocardiogram (ECG – a heart tracing) patches stay on during the test.
• Please bring photo identification and your BC Services Card (or BC Care Card)

Before we begin the test, your care team will attach sticky patches, called electrodes, to your chest. These patches lead to a machine. It records the electrical signals that create heart rhythms. We will take this recording while you exercise on a regular treadmill.

A cardiology technologist will be with you throughout the test. During the test, it's important to communicate any discomfort or symptoms. For example, chest pain, shortness of breath, or dizziness. If necessary, you can stop the test. Your healthcare team has training to handle any complications or emergencies that may arise.

Other things you should expect:

• We will ask you to undress from the waist up and wear a hospital gown
• We will clean your skin, and if necessary, shave or clip the hair so the patches stick well
• We attach a blood pressure cuff and a probe (a soft clip) on your finger, to monitor your vital signs while you exercise
• Before you start the test, we will show you how to get on and walk on the treadmill
• The treadmill starts slowly at first. It gradually gets faster and steeper every 3 minutes
• We will take your blood pressure often while you exercise
• As you continue to exercise, the test will become harder and your pulse and blood pressure will rise. This is normal. Specially trained staff will be closely monitoring you
• We want you to exercise for as long as you can, because this increases the accuracy of the test
• If you feel you can’t continue (because you’re tired or short of breath, etc.), tell the technologist. They will slow the treadmill down to a stop
• After you get off the treadmill, we will take a final blood pressure within a minute after stopping the test

After that, you’ll have a few minutes to sit and relax.

You can get dressed and go home. A cardiologist (heart doctor) will review the test. They will then send a report to your doctor, usually within 3-4 days.

You will be able to return to your normal activities after the test. We suggest you bring someone with you to drive you home, because the medicine may leave you feeling weak. Your family doctor and cardiologist will get a report of the results within a week.