Comparing stress testing methods

PREVIEW

Conventional exercise stress testing or stress echocardiography? Deciding between these two noninvasive cardiac evaluation techniques can be a regular occurrence, given the frequency of coronary artery disease (CAD) in the US population. When can you rely on exercise stress testing alone to do the job? What situations call for stress echocardiography? When should pharmacologic agents be substituted for exercise in stress echocardiography? In this comparison of the two techniques, Drs Tak and Gutierrez discuss indications, contraindications, and other issues that enter into selection of the appropriate test for the individual patient.