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Glossary – common medical terms explained in simple language
ECG
An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a non-invasive test for the heart. Leads are applied over different parts of the body and a standard 12 lead ECG is obtained. It can provide crucial information to an expert. It can detect heart attacks (myocardial infarction, ischemia), abnormal heart rhythms, heart rate irregularities and other conditions including hypertrophy, bundle branch blocks, pericardial inflammation, electrolyte imbalances and potential drug induced changes.
TMT
A treadmill test (TMT) or exercise stress test helps us find out how your heart handles its workload in terms of physical exertion. Leads are placed on your chest and you are supposed to walk on a treadmill connected to a computer software with a pre-set protocol. As your heart works harder during the test, it requires more oxygen and blood. This test can give clues if there is a lack of blood supply through the arteries of the heart. A TMT can be done in patients who experience occasional transient episodes of chest pain, breathlessness, palpitations, but have no clearly conclusive ECGs. Their underlying heart condition may be detected during a TMT. If TMT indicates some findings, this has to be followed up by further cardiologic evaluation.
GLYCEMIC INDEX
The ability to increase blood sugar levels is called the glycemic index (GI) of a particular food. Different food items increase our blood sugar levels to different extent. The glycemic index (GI) is a value used to measure how much specific foods increase blood sugar levels. Foods are classified as low, medium, or high glycemic foods and ranked on a scale of 0–100. Glycemic index of glucose is 100. Other foods have less than 100 glycemic index. The lower the GI of a specific food, the less it may affect your blood sugar levels. Sweet foods have a high glycemic index and will increase blood sugar rapidly. Salads and vegetables have low glycemic index and will increase sugars slowly. Choosing low GI foods is one of the several ways of keeping our blood sugar levels in control.