diagnostic procedures

angiocardiogram

a series of images taken of the heart and its major blood vessels after the injection of a radiocontrast solution (radioactive solution that will show up on an image) into the coronary arteries (blood vessels that supply the heart muscle with blood)

• provides more detail than a echocardiogram

• carries some risk as patients may react to the radiocontrast solution

ascultation

listening for sounds

• may be able to detect a heart murmur (the sound the heart makes when a valve does not close properly) through this

cardiac catheterization

a procedure during which a cardiologist guides a catheter (a thin tube) through a vein or artery and into the heart, where she uses a radioactive dye to observe the heart and its blood vessels.

• can trigger a myocardial infarction, cerebral vascular accident, an infection or a reaction to the dye being used

hematocrit

The percentage of red blood cells, by volume, in a sample of blood

• can use this to evaluate hydration

• can see if someones suffers from polycythemia (more RBC’s than normal) or a type of anemia (fewer RBCs than normal)

nuclear stress test

This test uses a radioactive material to show how blood flows through the heart before and after exercise. It also uses electrodes attached to an electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) ─a machine that records the electrical activity of the heart during exercise (usually walking on a treadmill).

phlebography; venography

a radiographic test that uses dye injected into a vein to produce an image of the veins in that extremity (limb)

phlebotomy

puncturing with a needle or surgically opening a vein for the purpose of withdrawing blood

sphygmomanometer

a measuring device used to measure the blood in an artery

angio

vessel

cardi/o

heart

ascult

to listen

hemat/o

blood

phleb/o and ven/o

vein

manos

thin

-tion

the process of

-ac

pertaining to

-er

one who

-ization

an action

-crit

to seperate

-graphy

producing a record or image

-tomy

cutting or surgical incision

-meter

to measure

sphygm/o

pressure

echocardiogram

an ultrasound of the heart

stethoscope

an instrument used to listen to sounds

congestive heart faliure

the failure of the heart due to a buildup of fluids

edema

fluid buildup in lungs and other tissues of the body

angiogram

an image of the heart’s blood vessels

myocardial infraction

heart attack

cerebral vascular accident

stroke

hydration

the amount of fluid in the body

deep vein thrombosis

a blood clot attached to the wall of a deep vein

embolus

a clot that is circulating in the blood stream

embolism

a clot that completely blocks a blood vessel

phlebotomist

a person trained to withdraw blood