FAQ

Echocardiogram (echo) is an ultrasound-based study of the heart. It uses sound waves, there is no radiation involved. It usually takes about 20- 30 minutes in a settled child, the duration may vary however depending on the complexity of the heart issue and mobility of the child. Echo involves taking short ultrasound clips of the heart. Similar to taking video clips it is extremely important that the child be as still as possible to get accurate ‘non blurry’ clips. Echo probe (camera) images the heart from the belly, the chest and the lower neck. To get best views of the heart the child’s position may need to be frequently changed for e.g., moving between being on the back and onto their sides. Older kids can change into a gown (provided in the clinics), younger kids if comfortable can take their top off or use a gown.

Echo and ECG are routinely performed in babies. Sometimes it can be a bit challenging to get babies and young children to stay still for long, gladly distraction techniques work well most of the time. In children younger than 6 months a dummy smeared with 24% sucrose (concentrated sugar solution) can act as a great distraction and get through the examination quickly. With your consent we can offer sucrose. If your baby uses a dummy, please bring it along. For babies not using a dummy, sometimes sucrose on parents’ finger can work equally well.!

Echo is usually done with the baby laying on a pillow on a parent’s lap. The parent may be sitting on an examination bed or in a chair. For breastfed babies if mum is comfortable feeding during the echo exam, it can work well in having a settled child and a quick examination. For bottle fed babies, having a bottle during the echo exam can be comforting. If possible, please get a bottle of milk (formula or breast milk) for the appointment. The baby or child needs to be always laying down for the examination, echo cannot be performed with a child sitting up or standing.

For toddlers and young children, a show on TV or on your phone can act as a great distraction. The examination room has a TV straight above the bed. Some children find it comforting if the parent lays next to them on the examination bed.

The ECG or electrocardiogram examines the flow of electricity around the heart and in a cooperative child it takes about 5 minutes. The heart generates electric current that powers the squeeze of the heart muscle, it’s a tiny amount of current that cannot be felt although the flow of this electricity can be studied by ECG. Similar to echo the baby/child needs to be very still to get reliable results. Stickers are applied to the chest, arms and legs, cables (leads) connect stickers to the ECG machine. The echocardiogram on the other hand studies the heart structure and its pumping and not the heart electricity.

The results are immediately available. Dr Moray will discuss the findings and the management plans with you. Dr Moray reviews all the tests again at the end of the clinic day. If there are some important findings that were not discussed with you during the appointment, Dr Moray will call you to discuss them. A clinic letter including all the test findings and discussion points will reach you and your referring doctor within two weeks.

We try our best that your appointment starts and finishes on time, however it may not be always possible. If the clinic is running late, the admin staff will keep you updated. Just like your little one, our other little patients sometimes may get scared during the appointment and we give them enough time to settle and feel comfortable. Also, the very specialised nature of the cardiac consultation may involve detailed lengthy discussions with yourself and likewise other parents. The appointments before yours may go over time delaying the appointments to follow. So please be patient and allow sufficient time for your appointment. For patients who may have to undertake long travels or a flight back home, please advise the staff when you make an appointment, so we can offer you an appointment earlier in the day.

It can be very useful to review clinic letters from your previous paediatric cardiology evaluations, echocardiogram reports, old ECGs, ED visits etc., so please bring them along.

Some children may need more tests depending on their cardiac issues. These tests will be organised at a later date, examples include Holter monitor, event monitor, exercise stress tests. Occasionally cardiac CT scan or MRI may be needed. Details will be discussed with you during the appointment. QPFC may need to refer the child to other clinics or Queensland Children’s Hospital for some of these additional tests.

Please contact the friendly admin team (07 33458483) for details of the fees. A standard appointment offers up to three individually billed services. Each service qualifies for Medicare rebate. 1) Echo (MBS item 55132), 2) Consultation (First consultation MBS item 110/ follow up consultation MBS item 116) & 3) ECG (MBS item 11714). Please refer to the Medicare website for details, www.mbsonline.gov.au and www.9health.gov.au. It’s extremely important that you have a valid referral and a Medicare card to be eligible to claim Medicare rebate. Should extra tests be needed, the costs and rebates will be discussed with you during the appointment.

There is free parking next to the McCullough Centre Building. Southport clinic patients can park on White Street or use metred street parking on Lawson Street. For any further queries, please contact the admin team.