Nov 1, 2015

The heart

Have you ever seen your heart? I guess that you would say "Of course not." Believe it or not, I have!

To be honest, it is almost impossible to directly see your own heart with your naked eye. Such situations, if ever, would lead to your death in a minute. An indirect way to see your heart, however, is available. Medical institutions have a variety of devises that make it possible to depict the heart, for example echocardiography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging.

Among these medical modalities, echocardiography is the most recommended. All you have to do is that you put an ultrasonographic probe on the chest after lifting up your shirt. It is very convenient and handy, isn't it?. Another advantage of echocardiography is no need for radiation exposure. In my hospital, I usually show my patients a movie of their heart, as shown below.
 



My small gift always surprises my patients. It seems like that they are impressed and satisfied to see his or her heart beating dynamically and continuously. They say, "Oh, this is my heart? Awesome! Thank you, doctor. You are so nice." Also, their words make me feel good and motivate me to work more heartily.

P.S.
Some may care about the cost to examine the heart by echocardiography. Luckily, it is affordable in Japan: almost 10 to 30 dollars on health insurance. I have heard that it would cost too much in the U.S., at least 10 times higher than in Japan, to undergo echocardiography, although it seems to vary depending on a hospital where you are examined.