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Show PHYSICAL you need FITNESS " HirvH Usi by Dale Nelson For years stress lesls in one form or another have been used to diagnose coronary artery disease. The usual procedure is to monitor the heart with an electrocardiogram iKC(J) while the person exercises according to test protocol on a treadmill or bicycle ergometer. Blxd pressure is also monitored as a part of the lest. In some cases, doctors do a resting KCU or have the person take a step test while lxing monitored. In other, the patient steps up- and down for a while and then has the heart tested with the KCC. Health professionals have even gone so far as to recommend that everyone over 35 be stress tested as a part of the yearly physical examination. Stress tests are Ix-ing recommended for anyone over 3J who is planning to embark on an exercise program. Do You Need a Stress Test? Originally it wasn't possible lo compare KCG findings with the amount of fatty-cholesterol deposits in the coronary arteris. Technologica I advances with coronary arteriograms (heart catheterization) have made this possible. Data are now available from a study sponsored by the Division of Heart and Vascular Disease of the National Heart. Lung and Blood Institute. ( The answer loom question is that it won't help a great deal. The study shows, for example, that men. (who are more prone to coronary artery disease al an earlier age than women i with typical chest pain, usually do . have coronary artery disease and the history is so reliable that doing a stress (est doesn't add much lo making a diagnosis. In a fairly high percentage of cases there are false negatives and false positives, which means that some who have no symptoms symp-toms do have coronary artery disease and others who have symptoms diagnosed from the (est really do not have coronary ' artery ,. disease. Such negative tests simply confuse the issue and lend a false sense of security lo the patient and the doctor. False-positive tests bring fear into lives where Hutc is nothing seriously wrong. What Does It All Mean? According lo Dr. I-iwrence K. Lamb, "II means the electrocardiographic elec-trocardiographic stress test is of little value, whether the results are positive or negative, in either patients who have symptoms of heart disease or in our general population which is symptom symp-tom free." Consequently, it seems obvious that millions of people who have no history of heart disease and have no symptoms to suggest heart disease should not be required lo have a stress lest before embarking on a sensible exercise program. The Ix-sl predictive tests are those that measure your risk factors -such as high blixxl pressure, favorable ratio of HDL LDL "cholesterol." smoking, ami some indirect factors such as obesity and lack of exercise. Obesity lends lo influence blood pressure unfavorably and the light kind of exercise, exer-cise, approached, "sen-siblv", "sen-siblv", favorably influciH'cs lhe ratio of' HDL LDL "cholesterol." I liastcn to add that somehow or other stress seems to lurk in the lives of many jH'ople. Don'l ignore it. U I Have Heart Disease? The presence of heart disease does not mean a xrson should nol exercise. F.v en when a person recovers adequately from a recognized heart attack, many heart specialists advocate a supervised exercise program. In ad dil ion, many x'oplc who engage in vigorous physical activity are found lo have had a lieart attack at some time in I Ih past. Coronary artery disease is an unpredictable disease. Kvcn a small hemorrhage under a fatly-clxdlesterol deposit may cause it lo swell and sudden ly narrow or obstruct a previously open artery. Tlx IhsI route to take is preventive. Kliminalc the known risk factors from your lifestyle and hope that you have selected your ancestors well. |