what is a bubble test?

Question

I was told that i was born with a tiny whole in my heart and i should have a bubble test done to verify it.

Answer 1

It involves an injection through an arm vein of sterile saline solution (salt water) by a nurse or physician. This will help the sonographer to see if there are any unusual connections within your heart. An intravenous tube (IV) will be inserted into one of your arm veins before the exam begins.

This link here sums it up pretty good! http://www.massgeneral.org/cardiology/cardiology/ultrasound.html

Answer 2

This article will help you out:

Echo Bubble test

Patients suffering Transient Ischaemic attack, 'the bends' severe migraine with aura or Stroke, may have a 'hole in the heart' whereby blood clots or substances can pass from the right side of the heart (or low pressure system) to the brain without being filtered by the lungs. These defects can be small e.g. a 'patent foramen ovale' , or large - atrial septal defect. It is worth detecting these defects because they can now be closed without open heart surgery. All patients should be screened with a bubble contrast test, and patients with a positive bubble test should then go onto to have a more invasive Tran oesophageal echocardiogram.

Description:

This test is designed to look for 'hole in the heart'. It is mildly invasive so the patient should give informed consent. A venflon cannula is placed in the right forearm. Three Ten mL syringes are filled with 0.9% normal saline. A fourth syringe containing 2 mL of air is used with a three way tap to agitate/mix the air into the saline in order to create a solution of micro bubbles that can be seen with ultrasound scanning. The patient is instructed to perform a valsalva procedure (nose closed, push down) and after practicing, lies in left lateral position so that the echo cardiographer can obtain a standard apical 4 chamber view of the heart.

10 mL of contrast is given to assess opacification of the right heart (while recording to video). 2 further shots are given during valsalva release (when the right atrial pressure rises above left atrial pressure). The amount of contrast passing into the left heart during this phase is recorded and classified as

0 - none
1- 0-15 per frame
2- 15-30 per frame
3 - >30

The venflon is then removed and patient can sit quietly for 10 minutes. Where large shunts occur, transient cerebral ischaemia have been reported occasionally.

Answer 3

Echocardiography
In transthoracic echocardiography, an atrial septal defect may be seen on color flow imaging as a jet of blood from the left atrium to the right atrium.
If agitated saline is injected into a peripheral vein during echocardiography, small air bubbles can be seen on echocardiographic imaging. It may be possible to see bubbles travel across an ASD either at rest or during a cough. (Bubbles will only flow from right atrium to left atrium if the RA pressure is greater than LA).
Because better visualization of the atria is achieved with transesophageal echocardiography, this test may be performed in individuals with a suspected ASD which is not visualized on transthoracic imaging.
Newer techniques to visualize these defects involve intracardiac imaging with special catheters that are typically placed in the venous system and advanced to the level of the heart. This type of imaging is becoming more common and involves only mild sedation for the patient typically.
If the individual has adequate echocardiographic windows, it is possible to use the echocardiogram to measure the cardiac output of the left ventricle and the right ventricle independently. In this way, it is possible to estimate the shunt fraction using echocardiograpy.