This is an automatically translated article.
The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Tran Cong Trinh - Radiologist - Radiology Department - Vinmec Central Park International General Hospital. The doctor has many years of experience in the field of diagnostic imaging.Ejection fraction is an important indicator in echocardiography because it will help doctors identify systolic dysfunction or evaluate the degree of left ventricular function decline, and is meaningful in evaluating the effectiveness of the treatment in patients with heart failure.
1. When should echocardiography?
The heart has an important function of pumping blood to feed the body. The pumping of blood by the heart is cyclical and the amount of blood pumped must be large enough to ensure the normal functioning of the body. If for some reason, the pumping power of the heart changes, the function of the organ systems in the body will also be affected. Therefore, it is necessary to perform echocardiography to evaluate the cause and have appropriate treatment.Echocardiography is a non-invasive method of exploration that does not harm health or cause pain to the patient. When performing an echocardiogram, the doctor will monitor the structure, size, heart rate and function through images to analyze and evaluate the heart's condition such as:
How the heart works, contracts, pumping power of the heart Size, shape, and pumping motion of the heart's walls The functioning of the heart valves Is there a tumor or infection around the heart valves, heart muscle, or blood vessels. From the above parameters will help the doctor diagnose possible problems in the heart such as: Large blood vessels in and out of the heart; problems with the heart muscle, the inner and outer membranes of the heart; heart valve disease blood clots in the heart chambers and abnormal holes between the chambers of the heart... Therefore, when seeing the following abnormal signs, the patient should go for an echocardiogram:
Shortness of breath when doing light work or at rest Feeling constantly tired Heart rhythm abnormalities such as arrhythmia, increased heart rate Swelling, edema in the legs.
Siêu âm tim là phương pháp thăm dò không xâm lấn, không gây hại sức khỏe cũng như gây đau cho con người
2. What is ejection fraction?
In addition to the clinical signs and history of cardiovascular disease, the ejection fraction is a very important index in the assessment of cardiac function in patients with heart failure. Ejection fraction, also known as the EF index in echocardiography, is an index used to evaluate left ventricular function, showing the actual amount of blood pumped out of the left ventricle after each stroke compared to the whole. the amount of blood previously contained in the left ventricle.According to research, the ejection fraction index in normal people in Vietnam is about 63 ± 7% - higher than the average in the world. Ejection fraction testing will help identify systolic dysfunction or assess the extent of left ventricular dysfunction.
In addition, in patients with heart failure, the ejection fraction is significant for evaluating the effectiveness of treatments. If the patient's ejection fraction improves, the treatment is effective. Therefore, ejection fraction is an important indicator in echocardiography.
3. Ejection fraction values in echocardiography
Ejection fraction readings on echocardiography may indicate abnormal or normal. Specifically:Reflecting systolic dysfunction: EF index for healthy people is about 50 - 70%. If the ultrasound shows a change in the ejection fraction, it means that the patient's heart health is in trouble. If the ejection fraction is higher than 75%, it is possible that the patient is suffering from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (thickening of the heart wall, especially in the left and right ventricles) that causes the chamber volume to decrease, from That is, the rate of blood pumped out of the heart increases while the amount of blood pumped back is very little. During echocardiography, if the ejection fraction is less than 50%, it may be a warning sign of impaired pumping function of the heart, the heart is no longer able to pump enough blood to meet the body's needs.
Chỉ số phân suất tống máu trong siêu âm tim có thể phản ánh tình trạng rối loạn chức năng tâm thu
4. What to do when ejection fraction decreases?
When the ejection fraction decreases, it is more dangerous to health, but the patient should not be too worried. Depending on the degree of reduction of the ejection fraction, the doctor will give appropriate recommendations such as:Salt restriction: The ejection fraction decreases immediately, the heart's pumping ability is not enough to meet the body's needs, causing fluid loss. trapped in the circulatory system. If you add a lot of salt to the body, the amount of fluid going in the day will increase, the pressure on the heart is also greater. Drug treatment: In addition to eating and drinking, the patient may be prescribed medication. Controlling the amount of fluid in the body: If the amount of fluid put into the body is large, it will put an extra burden on the heart, making heart failure patients more and more severe, difficult to treat. Exercise and exercise reasonably: According to research, patients who exercise regularly and reasonably will significantly improve cardiovascular health and ejection fraction of the heart. Therefore, everyone should spend at least 30 minutes a day doing proper exercise. To protect heart health in general and detect early signs of myocardial infarction and stroke, customers can sign up for the Cardiovascular Screening Package - Basic Cardiovascular Examination of Vinmec International General Hospital. The examination package helps to detect cardiovascular problems at the earliest through tests and modern imaging methods. The package is for all ages, genders and is especially essential for people with risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
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SEE MOREWhat is special about 4D echocardiography at Vinmec? What is the significance of echocardiography in the examination and detection of cardiovascular diseases? What is a transthoracic echocardiogram?
