title: Using noninvasive methods to study the aging heart.
abstract: Except in unusual cases, complex or invasive techniques aren't necessary to examine the heart of an elderly patient. Noninvasive methods currently being used are electrocardiography, arterial and venous pulse tracings, echocardiography, and roentgenology. Interesting data have been collected by correlating phonocardiographic with echocardiographic tracings of the mitral valve, as well as with arterial pulse tracings. Two findings that should prevent a hasty diagnosis of heart disease are that the senile heart often has an abnormal fouth sound and that a systolic murmur can be heard in one of five persons. Other studies have shown that about one-third of patients have some type of heart block and that the interval between the aortic component of the second heart sound and the peak of the early diastolic wave of the mitral echogram is longer in old persons.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001021:Aortic Valve; D001024:Aortic Valve Stenosis / Q000175:diagnosis; D002037:Bundle-Branch Block / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000175:diagnosis; D004452:Echocardiography; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D006326:Heart Auscultation; D006327:Heart Block / Q000453:epidemiology; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006337:Heart Murmurs; D006347:Heart Sounds; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged