Best Child Heart Doctors Howrah | Pediatric Cardiologists in Howrah, West Bengal

Here are some of the advanced tests we use to get a complete picture of your child’s heart health:

1. Holter Monitoring (and Event Monitors): Tracking the Heart’s Rhythm

• What it is: A Holter monitor is a small, portable device that continuously records your child’s heart’s electrical activity (like an ECG) for 24 hours or longer (up to 7 days). Small, sticky patches are placed on your child’s chest and connected to the device, which can be worn comfortably under clothes. An event monitor is similar but only records when your child presses a button during symptoms, or when it automatically detects an abnormal rhythm.
• How it helps: It’s like taking a continuous video of your child’s heart rhythm. This allows us to catch irregular heartbeats (arrhythmias) or abnormal heart rates that might only happen occasionally and wouldn’t be seen during a quick ECG in the clinic.
• Symptoms it helps investigate: Fainting, dizziness, palpitations (feeling the heart skip a beat or race), unexplained fatigue, or chest pain.
• Diagnostic procedures: We’ll analyze the extensive data to identify specific types of arrhythmias.
• Treatment insight: The results help us determine if medication, a pacemaker, or other interventions are needed to manage the heart rhythm.

2. Stress Test (Exercise Test): How the Heart Works Under Strain

• What it is: This test involves your child exercising on a treadmill or stationary bike while we continuously monitor their heart rate, rhythm, blood pressure, and sometimes oxygen levels. We gradually increase the intensity of the exercise.
• How it helps: It shows us how your child’s heart performs when it’s working hard. Some heart problems, like certain rhythm issues or blood flow limitations, only show up during physical exertion.
• Symptoms it helps investigate: Chest pain during exercise, dizziness or fainting with activity, shortness of breath, or to evaluate exercise capacity.
• Diagnostic procedures: We watch for changes in the ECG, blood pressure, or symptoms as your child exercises.
• Treatment insight: Helps guide decisions about activity restrictions, medication adjustments, or the need for further intervention.

3. Head-Up Tilt Table Test: Investigating Fainting Spells

• What it is: This test helps us investigate why your child might be fainting or experiencing unexplained dizziness. Your child lies flat on a special table, and after a period of rest, the table is slowly tilted upright to mimic standing up. We continuously monitor their heart rate, blood pressure, and ECG.
• How it helps: Some children experience “reflex syncope” (vasovagal syncope), where their body overreacts to standing, causing a sudden drop in blood pressure and/or heart rate, leading to fainting. This test helps us observe this reaction in a controlled environment.
• Symptoms it helps investigate: Recurrent fainting, near-fainting, or unexplained dizziness, especially after standing for long periods.
• Diagnostic procedures: We look for specific patterns of blood pressure and heart rate changes that occur just before or during a fainting episode.
• Treatment insight: Helps us recommend specific strategies, like increased fluid intake, salt intake, medication, or physical counter-maneuvers, to prevent future episodes.

4. Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing (CPET): A Deeper Look at Heart and Lung Performance

• What it is: This is a more advanced version of a stress test. Your child exercises on a treadmill or bike while wearing a mask that measures the oxygen they breathe in and the carbon dioxide they breathe out. We also monitor their heart rate, rhythm, and blood pressure very closely.
• How it helps: CPET provides a precise, detailed assessment of how well the heart, lungs, and muscles work together during exercise. It can accurately measure exercise capacity, identify the specific cause of exercise intolerance (is it the heart, lungs, or muscles?), and quantify the severity of certain conditions.
• Symptoms it helps investigate: Severe shortness of breath with activity, unexplained fatigue, limited exercise ability, or to assess readiness for certain surgeries or heart transplants.
• Diagnostic procedures: It gives us objective measurements of oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, and how gases are exchanged, providing a highly accurate picture of cardiopulmonary fitness.
• Treatment insight: Essential for fine-tuning treatment plans, evaluating the effectiveness of therapies, and guiding exercise prescriptions for children with complex heart or lung conditions.