CCT CCT Cardiac Diagnostic Testing & Equipment 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: During a stress echocardiogram, new wall motion abnormalities during exercise indicate:
- Myocardial ischemia in the affected territory (Correct answer)
- Normal cardiac response
- Pericarditis
- Valvular regurgitation
Correct answer: Myocardial ischemia in the affected territory
New regional wall motion abnormalities that appear during exercise stress echo indicate inadequate blood supply to that myocardial segment, consistent with ischemia.
Question 2: Which cardiac biomarker is the most specific and sensitive indicator of myocardial injury?
- Troponin I or T (Correct answer)
- CK-MB
- Myoglobin
- LDH
Correct answer: Troponin I or T
Cardiac troponins (I and T) are highly specific to myocardial tissue and rise within 2–4 hours of injury, remaining elevated for up to 14 days.
Question 3: An echocardiogram reports an ejection fraction (EF) of 35%. This finding is consistent with:
- Reduced ejection fraction heart failure (HFrEF) (Correct answer)
- Normal cardiac function
- Hyperdynamic circulation
- Constrictive pericarditis
Correct answer: Reduced ejection fraction heart failure (HFrEF)
A normal ejection fraction is 55–70%; an EF of 35% indicates severely reduced ventricular systolic function, classified as HFrEF.
Question 4: During cardiac catheterization, a pressure gradient of 50 mmHg across the aortic valve indicates:
- Severe aortic stenosis (Correct answer)
- Mild aortic regurgitation
- Normal valve function
- Mitral valve prolapse
Correct answer: Severe aortic stenosis
A peak-to-peak or mean gradient greater than 40–50 mmHg across the aortic valve during catheterization is diagnostic of severe aortic stenosis.
Question 5: The P-R interval on a 12-lead ECG represents:
- Time for impulse conduction from atria through the AV node to ventricles (Correct answer)
- Duration of ventricular depolarization
- Ventricular repolarization time
- Duration of atrial repolarization only
Correct answer: Time for impulse conduction from atria through the AV node to ventricles
The PR interval measures the total time from atrial depolarization (P wave onset) through AV nodal delay to the start of ventricular depolarization.
Question 6: A Holter monitor is best used to detect:
- Intermittent arrhythmias not captured on a routine 12-lead ECG (Correct answer)
- Coronary artery blockage
- Valvular anatomy
- Ejection fraction
Correct answer: Intermittent arrhythmias not captured on a routine 12-lead ECG
Holter monitors provide 24–48 hours of continuous ECG recording, making them ideal for correlating symptoms with transient arrhythmias in ambulatory patients.
CCT CCT Cardiac Diagnostic Testing & Equipment 1
During a stress echocardiogram, new wall motion abnormalities during exercise indicate: