Echocardiography
An echocardiogram is an ultrasound of the heart that shows it working in real time, most often to find out what a murmur means, and every one taken here gets a report from a board-certified cardiologist.
An echocardiogram is one of the best and least invasive ways to look at a working heart.
Why a pet has one
The usual reason is a murmur heard during a routine exam. Sometimes it is a cough in an older dog, a pet who tires more easily than they did, an abnormal rhythm, or a heart that looked enlarged on an X-ray.
The scan evaluates the four chambers and the valves directly. Whether a chamber wall has thickened. Whether a chamber has enlarged, and which one. Whether the valves are closing properly so blood keeps moving in the right direction. Those findings are what separate a murmur that needs monitoring once a year from one that needs treatment now, and there is no way to tell them apart with a stethoscope.
Where heart failure is suspected we will recommend chest X-rays as well. Fluid in the lungs is a radiographic finding rather than an echocardiographic one.
Patients under two years old
Echocardiograms are performed here on patients over two years of age.
A younger pet who needs one, most often a puppy or kitten whose murmur was picked up at a vaccination visit, is referred straight to a cardiologist instead. A murmur at that age is a congenital question until proven otherwise, and those are better evaluated by the specialist directly.
On the day
Hair is shaved on both sides of the chest so the ultrasound probe can get the best scan possible, and your pet lies on their side on a padded table. Most tolerate that well. Some patients are given light sedation, arranged in advance.
Your pet goes home right after the scan is complete, always the same day.
Who performs it, and who writes the report
Capturing the images and writing the report are two different jobs.
The scanning is done here by our own veterinarians and technicians rather than by a visiting service, and they are certified in ultrasound and echocardiography through Oncura.
Every echocardiogram gets a report from a board-certified cardiologist, and it is included in the price. Results come back in one to three days. There is no STAT option on an echocardiogram.
If your pet is seen at another hospital
You do not need a referral to book an echocardiogram here.
If your own veterinarian would rather keep the rest of your pet’s care and send you here for the scan alone, that works too. We telephone you with the results and send the cardiologist’s report to them, and they take the next steps from there.
What it costs
An echocardiogram is $795, including the cardiologist’s report.
Ready when you are
Echocardiograms — common questions
My pet has a heart murmur. Does that mean heart disease?
Not on its own. A murmur is turbulent blood flow that can be heard through a stethoscope, and it can mean a valve that is not closing properly, a chamber that has changed shape, or nothing of consequence at all. An echocardiogram is how that question gets answered, because it shows the heart moving instead of a single still image.
Does my pet need to fast first?
No. Fasting applies to an abdominal ultrasound, not to this one. Your pet can eat normally before an echocardiogram.
Will my pet need sedation?
Most do not. We can usually tell in advance which patients will need sedation to lie still, and we say so when the scan is booked.
How long until I get the results?
One to three days. Every echocardiogram taken here gets a report from a board-certified cardiologist, and there is no STAT option on these.
Related
Call and we will arrange it
20801 N Scottsdale Rd, Suite 101 · Scottsdale, AZ 85255
480-585-3512