Echocardiogram

Cardiac Ultrasound

Because an echocardiogram is an ultrasound of your heart, it gives your cardiologist moving pictures of your heart health: its size, structure, and ability to pump your blood.

As part of our diagnostic heart services, Bassett Healthcare Network cardiology specialists use echocardiograms to diagnose a range of heart conditions, including heart failure, heart valve disease, heart defects, heart attacks, and blood clots.

Heart Echo Test

An echocardiogram procedure may be needed if:

• You have heart-related symptoms, including chest pain, shortness of breath, swollen ankles or feet, fainting or dizzy spells, or unexplained fatigue
• Your primary care practitioner heard abnormal heart sounds, such as a heart murmur, during a regular exam through a stethoscope
• Your heart health is being monitored because you’ve had heart surgery, a stroke, a heart attack, coronary artery disease, an arrhythmia, cardiomyopathy, or other heart condition

During the Echocardiogram

A cardiac ultrasound, which takes about an hour, is painless and carries no risks or complications. 

During your heart ultrasound, you will lie on your back or left side while a technician gently rolls a device, called a transducer, over your chest. The transducer records sound waves that create an image of your heart on a monitor. 

Results of the Echocardiogram

Cardiologists at Bassett Healthcare Network use the results of a heart echo to help diagnose the following heart conditions:

• Abnormal heart structure, possibly a congenital heart defect
• Heart valve problems, such as leaks or narrowing of the valves
• Blood clots in or around the heart that could cause a stroke
• Damaged or weak heart muscle, often the result of a heart attack or narrowing of the coronary arteries
• Enlarged heart, or thickening of the heart tissue connected to heart valve disease, high blood pressure, heart failure, and heart defects

Take Care of Your Heart

If you have symptoms of a heart condition, or are monitoring your heart health, you may need a cardiac ultrasound. Ask your primary care physician or practitioner for a referral.

Bassett Healthcare Network offers echocardiograms in Central New York, including Cooperstown, Oneonta, Cobleskill, Little Falls, and beyond.