For some, cardiac disease may be identified during a physical examination or present early warning symptoms, for others cardiac episodes can strike when least expected. Diagnosing and treating cardiac disease is where the one - two punch of the expertise of healthcare providers and specialized healthcare equipment comes into play.
From physical examination rooms in clinics to acute care settings like emergency rooms, cardiac ICUs, and catheterization labs, advanced healthcare equipment is essential to ensuring accurate diagnoses and timely treatment of heart disease.
This post offers a representative list of essential healthcare equipment specialized for the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease.
In this post we will:
- Define Diagnostic and Treatment Cardiac Healthcare Equipment
- Explore Diagnostic Cardiac Healthcare Equipment
- Explore Healthcare Equipment for the Treatment of Heart Disease
Diagnostic vs Treatment Healthcare Equipment for Heart Disease
Before looking at the specific equipment used in cardiac healthcare, let’s take a moment to define diagnostic medical equipment and medical treatment equipment.
Diagnostic equipment is used to collect data. Equipment like vital signs monitors or devices used in a laboratory can help determine the cause of a patient's symptoms.
Medical treatment equipment is used to actively treat a diagnosed condition with interventions like medication delivery, surgery, or physical therapy.
Diagnostic Healthcare Equipment for Heart Disease
Diagnostic equipment for heart disease is essential for the rapid identification and management of cardiovascular conditions. Tools such as electrocardiograms (ECGs), echocardiography machines, and blood pressure cuffs provide real-time insights into heart function and structural abnormalities. These technologies enable clinicians to quickly diagnose conditions like arrhythmia, myocardial infarctions, and heart failure.
Electrocardiogram (ECG)
The ECG is the cornerstone of heart disease diagnostics. It is a painless, quick, and simple test that records the heart's electrical activity
What it shows
An ECG can show the heart's rate, rhythm, and the strength and timing of electrical impulses. It can also help determine if there is a blockage that is reducing blood flow to the heart.
What it can diagnose
An ECG can help diagnose several heart conditions, including:
- Arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation (AFib) or atrial flutter
- Heart disease
- Heart attack (current or previous)
- Heart failure
- Cardiomegaly (enlarged heart)
When it is used
An ECG is often the first test performed if there are signs of a heart condition. It can be done in a doctor's office, outpatient clinic, or hospital. It can also be part of a stress test, which is performed while the patient is exercising or under light stress.
Echocardiography
An echocardiogram, or echo, is a painless test that uses ultrasound to create images of the heart.
What it shows
The images show the heart's size, shape, valves, chambers, and how well it is pumping blood.
What it can diagnose
An abnormal echocardiogram can indicate several conditions, including:
- Blood clots in the heart
- Cardiomyopathy, or a weakening of the heart muscle
- Congenital heart disease
- Fluid in the pericardium
- Heart valve disease
Other uses
An echocardiogram can also help determine how well the heart handles activity, the risk of coronary artery disease, and how well cardiac treatments are working.
Types of echocardiograms
The most common type is a transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE), but a transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) may also be used. There are also newer options that can use 3-D imaging or fit inside the arteries.
Stress Test Equipment
A stress test, also known as an exercise stress test, is a non-invasive procedure that uses a variety of healthcare devices to monitor the heart's activity while it is working harder than normal. The test can help diagnose heart disease by showing how well the heart is working during physical activity:
Here are the most common devices used during a stress test:
- EKG: Records your heart's electrical activity, including your heart rate.
- Blood Pressure Cuff: Monitors blood pressure throughout the test.
- Treadmill or Stationary Bike: Increase the work of the heart by walking on the treadmill or riding a stationary bike.
- Ultrasound Wand: Used to collect images of the heart if an echocardiogram is being administered as part of the stress test.
Cardiac crash carts and defibrillators are also present in the testing location.
A stress test can help diagnose a number of heart conditions such as coronary artery disease (CAD), Valvular heart disease, and Arrhythmia.
Stress tests can also help determine safe exercise levels after heart surgery or a heart attack, and guide treatment planning.
A nuclear stress test, also known as a thallium stress test, may be performed in addition to an exercise stress test. This test involves injecting a small amount of radioactive dye into your bloodstream, which is then detected by a special camera to create images of your heart.
Shop CME for Stress Test Equipment
Cardiac MRI and CT Scanners
Cardiac MRIs and CT scans are non-invasive imaging techniques that can help diagnose heart disease by producing detailed images of the heart and its blood vessels:
Cardiac MRI
Uses radio waves to create images of the heart and nearby blood vessels. These MRIs can help identify damaged heart tissue, areas without enough blood supply, and issues with the lungs, chest cavity, and esophagus. Often, MRIs are better than other imaging techniques for distinguishing between normal and diseased tissue.
Cardiac CT
Cardiac CTs use X-rays to create high-resolution images of the heart's structure. CT scans can help identify coronary artery disease, including plaque buildup in the arteries. Doctors can also use CT scans to calculate a calcium score, which estimates the extent of coronary artery disease.
Laboratory Equipment
Blood tests processed with laboratory equipment can help diagnose heart disease by measuring the levels of various substances in your blood.
The following laboratory equipment is commonly used for blood testing:
Blood Gas Analyzers measure the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood in addition to the pH.
Blood Collection Tubes contain the blood sample and feature a variety of additives designed to preserve the blood for specific testing.
Centrifuges separates blood components of plasma and serum.
Hematology Analyzers measure the levels of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
Shop CME for Laboratory Equipment
Healthcare Equipment for the Treatment of Heart Disease
Cardiac treatment healthcare equipment plays a critical role in managing and stabilizing patients with acute cardiovascular conditions. These devices, defibrillators, cardiac monitors, and infusion pumps, are designed to support heart function, monitor vital signs, and deliver life-saving interventions. By providing real-time data and advanced therapeutic capabilities, this equipment improves the precision and speed of care during emergencies, and by extension, patient outcomes.
Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Machines
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machines are typically used in intensive care units to provide short-term support to the heart and lungs when they are failing.
Benefits
ECMO allows the heart and lungs to rest, which can help them heal. It can also be used to keep a person alive during surgery or while waiting for a transplant.
Types of ECMO
There are two types of ECMO, which are determined by which blood vessels are used:
- Venovenous (VV) ECMO: Used when only the lungs need to rest and heal.
- Venoarterial (VA) ECMO: Used when both the heart and lungs need to rest and heal.
Ventilators
Ventilators are used to treat heart disease by providing respiratory support and improving oxygenation.
Here are the types of ventilation used to treat heart disease:
Mechanical Ventilation is at its core a form of life support. It assists or completely takes over the process of breathing for a patient who is unable to do so on their own.
Noninvasive Ventilation delivers air from the ventilator to the lungs via a face mask. It can be more comfortable than a breathing tube and may allow the patient to cough, talk, and swallow.
Infusion Pumps
Infusion pumps are used to treat heart disease through the infusion of medication that changes the heart's calcium levels to help the heart muscle contract.
Here are some ways infusion pumps are used to treat heart disease:
Inotropic therapy
Also known as heart pump medication, this therapy is used to strengthen the heart muscle's contractions and may also speed up the heart's rhythm. It is often used to treat end-stage heart failure, and sometimes in the short term for people waiting for a heart transplant.
Outpatient Dobutamine infusions
This treatment can be effective for patients with severe congestive heart failure who are not responding to other treatments or who are waiting for a heart transplant.
Subcutaneous administration of Treprostinil
This treatment is used for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and can improve clinical and hemodynamic outcomes.
Infusion pumps can be used for continuous, daily, or every other day infusions, depending on the patient's condition.
Defibrillators
Defibrillators treat heart disease by delivering an electric shock to the heart to restore a normal rhythm or stop cardiac arrest:
Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs)
These battery-operated devices are about the size of a deck of cards and are surgically implanted in the chest. They continuously monitor the heart's activity and can deliver a shock or rapid pacing to correct dangerous arrhythmia. ICDs can also help the heart pump blood more effectively for people with heart failure.
Subcutaneous ICDs (SICDs)
These devices are like ICDs but are inserted under the skin of the chest, outside of the ribcage. They can only deliver high-energy shocks.
Automated external defibrillators (AEDs)
These devices are used to deliver a shock to a person in cardiac arrest. When the pads are placed on the person's chest, the AED will measure the heartbeat and only deliver a shock if needed.
Defibrillators are used to treat people in cardiac arrest or have life-threatening abnormal heart rhythms, such as ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation. They can also be used for people who have had a heart attack, have congestive heart failure, or have a family history of sudden cardiac death.
Cardiac Monitors
Cardiac monitors are devices that record the heart's electrical activity to help diagnose and manage heart conditions. They can help identify irregular heartbeats, assess the risk for future heart-related events, and monitor the effectiveness of medications.
Here are several common types of cardiac monitors:
Cardiac event monitors
These portable devices are about the size of a pager and are used to record the heart's electrical activity when symptoms occur less than daily. They can be worn for up to 30 days and are attached to the chest with a sticky patch.
Holter monitors
These portable monitors are typically worn for 24–48 hours but can be worn for up to 14 days. They are attached to the chest with a sticky patch that secures a sensor.
Loop recorders
These implantable devices are placed under the skin on the left side of the chest and can continuously monitor the heart's electrical activity for up to five years.
Partner with CME for Cardiac Healthcare Equipment
Over the course of becoming the United States’ largest equipment-only specialty distributor in healthcare, we have built solid relationships with industry leading manufacturers of cardiac healthcare equipment.
Our expert account managers will work with you and the manufacturers’ representatives to help select cardiac medical equipment that will facilitate streamlined processes and improve patient outcomes.
Complementing CME’s focus on medical equipment are order management, direct-to-site delivery, and biomedical services. We are the only medical equipment distributor nationwide, able to say we are truly a one-stop-shop.
Order Management Services
Our single point of contact project management team helps simplify cardiac medical equipment procurement by working with facility administrators, procurement professionals, and manufacturers on your behalf to ensure delivery dates are met and any issues that may arise are resolved.
Direct-To-Site Logistics and Delivery Services
In addition to delivering medical equipment fully assembled when it is convenient for staff and clients, CME Direct-to-Site services can absorb many of the man-hours associated with receiving large orders by receiving, inspecting and warehousing the order(s) for a single delivery. Our Direct-to-Site teams will deliver assembled cardiac medical equipment to service locations in the facility and remove all packing debris, so the equipment is ready for immediate use.
Biomedical Services
Biomedical services have been at the heart of CME for over forty-five years. We are the only medical equipment distributor nationwide with an in-house team of biomedical technicians available to perform asset tagging, asset validation, equipment check-in, preventative maintenance, and repair.
Click CHAT to begin a conversation about your cardiac medical equipment needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most important diagnostic tool for heart disease?
The ECG is often the first and most essential tool for diagnosing heart disease.
How does a defibrillator save lives?
A defibrillator delivers an electric shock to restore normal heart rhythm during cardiac arrest.
What is the role of an echocardiogram?
Echocardiograms offer real-time images of the heart’s structure and function, aiding in diagnosis and treatment planning.
Are wearable devices reliable for heart monitoring?
Yes, many wearable devices are FDA-approved and provide accurate heart rate and rhythm monitoring.
How often should healthcare equipment be maintained?
Routine checks should be performed monthly, with comprehensive servicing annually.
About CME: CME Corp is the nation’s premier source for healthcare equipment, turnkey logistics, and biomedical services, representing 2 million+ products from more than 2,000 manufacturers. With two corporate offices and 35+ service centers, our mission is to help healthcare facilities nationwide reduce the cost of the equipment they purchase, make their equipment specification, delivery, installation, and maintenance processes more efficient, and help them seamlessly launch, renovate and expand on schedule.
