It is the combination of a cardiac ultrasound scan study and a stress test, aiming at the study of the heart motility during the stress test which is usually performed pharmaceutically, which means that substances, such as dobutamine, are administered, that increase the contractility of the heart; dobutamine is a substance that exists in the human body, however at smaller quantities. The test is divided into four 3-minute stages, with the dose of the substance being increased progressively from a stage to the next.
The entire procedure is performed under clinical, electrocardiographic and echocardiographic monitoring, where the gradual increase of the motility of the heart walls is monitored. The test can be stopped at any time of the procedure, when the desired heart rate, depending on the age, is achieved, or in the case that occur clinical, electrocardiographic or echocardiographic findings of myocardial ischemia.