Hypoxia and Medicine

How are cardiac ischemia and shortness of breath related?

I have had significant shortness of breath and am being treated with inhalers, nebulizer and meds. EKG and chemical stress test results said "provocable ischemia of interior (anterior?) wall ". Haven't gotten results of echocardiogram yet. I had it done 3 weeks ago, shouldn't I have heard something from my PCP by now whether it be good or bad? I am scheduled to see a cardiologist next week. Am I to assume that cardiologist will read echo before I am to see him and that is the way I will get the results?

Public Comments

1. if the heart is not getting sufficient blood, then it may not be able to pump as efficiently as it should which means less blood is getting to the lungs to be oxygenated, and can cause shortness of breath. i , assume that the cardiologist will read the echo before he sees you- sometimes it takes a long while before a cardiologist gets to read the echo, but the echo tech will usually be skilled enough to see if there was something that constitiutes needing emergent care-- but meanwhile, i would try to think..no news is good news, at least they don't think it is an emergency and need to see you sooner. good luck
2. They can be, shortness of breath can be one of the side effects of decreased heart function.
3. So, if you have provocable ischemia of the anterior wall of your heart it means that you probably failed your stress test (depending, of course, on how much of the wall went down). It certainly could explain your shortness of breath, as someone with heart disease can become short of breath with activity as a sign of poor blood flow to the heart. Your cardiologist will talk to you about it. Failing a stress test is almost never a true emergency, though it will have to be dealt with. Depending on the results, I'd suspect the cardiologist will offer you a cardiac catheterization (a more invasive heart test) to get a better idea of your potential heart disease. The echo would certainly help his decision as well by telling him how well your heart functions, and whether there are parts that have already stopped pumping well.