Echocardiography is also referred to as cardiac ultrasound. This test is performed by a specially trained technician. It is a test that uses high frequency sound waves to generate pictures of the heart.  During the test, the patient will generally lie on their back; gel is applied to their skin to increase the conductivity of the ultrasound waves. A technician then moves the small, plastic transducer over the chest. The test is painless and can take from 10 minutes to an hour.

 

The machine then analyses the information and develops images of your child's heart. These images are seen on a monitor. This is referred to as an echocardiogram.

 

Echocardiography can help in the diagnosis of many heart problems including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or dilated cardiomyopathy.