Don't eat anything the night before the test, and avoid any foods that contain caffeine for a full day beforehand. You'll have to skip your morning cup of coffee or tea, and avoid sodas and chocolate. Your doctor will let you know if you need to stop taking any of your medicines before the test.
Avoid caffeine for 24 hours before testing. This includes coffee, tea, energy drinks and certain over-the-counter medications. Not smoke or use tobacco products. Stop taking certain prescription medications the day of your test.
The radioactive liquid leaves your body through your urine and bowel movements. Anyone who touches your urine or bowel movements should also wash his or her hands. Limit time to cuddle and hug children under 3 years old. Limit close time for up to 18 hours after your test.
People usually can go back to normal activities immediately. You may want to drink plenty of fluids to help flush the tracer out of your body. After the test, you may feel tired or dizzy or have a headache. Those symptoms should go away with time and rest.
Preparing for Your Nuclear Stress Test
Do not eat or drink anything that is caffeinated or decaffeinated for at least 24 hours before the procedure. You may have a light meal 2 hours before your appointment. All medication should be taken as you would normally, unless otherwise directed by our office or your physician.
After an exercise stress test, patients may feel tired for several hours or longer after the procedure, particularly if they do not normally exercise. Otherwise, patients should feel normal within a few hours after the procedure, if not sooner. If fatigue lasts longer than a day, notify the doctor.
The first day will usually be the stress portion (plan on two hours). The second day is the resting portion and no restrictions for caffeine or beta blockers are required (plan on at least one hour).
The test can show the size of the heart's chambers, how well the heart is pumping blood, and whether the heart has any damaged or dead muscle. Nuclear stress tests can also give doctors information about your arteries and whether they might be narrowed or blocked because of coronary artery disease.
Your target heart rate during a stress test depends on your age. For adults, the maximum predicted heart rate is 220 minus your age. So, if you're 40 years old, the maximum predicted heart rate is 220 – 40 = 180.
The nuclear stress test is a two day test done in two parts: a “rest” part and a “stress” part.
They're Not Stressful
Stress in fact means putting additional expectations on the heart – this could be by simply walking on a treadmill, not running a marathon. The goal is simply for the patient to increase his heart rate and blood flow more than it would be at rest.
Yes, a light breakfast is allowed with all types of Stress Tests (Nuclear, Stress Echo and regular Stress Tests). There is a caffeine restriction for 24 hours only with a Nuclear Stress Test.
To minimize interference between natural skin oils and ECG electrodes, it is best to take a shower or bath on the day of the test. Do not apply any lotions to your chest before the test.
During a stress test: Your entire stress test, including the prep time, would take about 45 minutes to an hour. The actual test takes only around 15-20 minutes. The patient would have to walk on a treadmill or pedal a stationary bicycle.
The angiogram and cardiac catheterization are the most definitive tests, better than a nuclear stress test, but both use significant radiation, and the cardiac catheterization uses a large catheter in the artery, which can cause complications.
Minor symptoms of heart blockage include irregular or skipped heartbeats, shortness of breath and chest tightness. Other symptoms may include pain or numbness in the legs or arms, as well as neck or throat pain.
Radiation exposure
A person should not have a nuclear stress test if they have low heart attack risk and no symptoms of heart issues.
Nuclear and echo stress tests don't assess for changes in those tiny vessels. Some women may have coronary artery vasospasm — a muscle spasm affecting the thin muscular layer of the coronary arteries. This condition can cause chest discomfort with a normal stress test result.
A nuclear stress test is very similar to a regular stress test, except it also includes imaging of your heart and radioactive dye in your veins. This test takes pictures of blood flow to your heart by first injecting radioactive dye (radiopharmaceutical or radiotracer) into your bloodstream before the images are taken.
Oftentimes, the next step for people who fail a stress test, and who have risk factors for or symptoms of cardiovascular disease, is an imaging test called a coronary angiography. Your doctor may call it a cardiac catheterization, or “cath” for short.
The nuclear stress test is generally very safe. There are some risks, like cardiac arrhythmias, chest pain, and, in rare cases, heart attack. The amount of radiation used is very small and does not increase your lifetime risk of cancer.
The amount of radiation we use in these tests is similar to that given by other diagnostic X-ray tests. Try to urinate frequently for 24 hours after any tests that used radiopharmaceuticals to lessen the radiation exposure. It shouldn't be a problem to be around other people and to use a bathroom normally.