How is too long to wait for stress test and echocardiogram?

[anxious in nj]

I have told I have to wait a month to have a stress test and a echocardiogram to more accurately diagnose Left Ventricular Hypertrophy. I have mild concentric LVH but for several reasons have never been treated for it other than to take blood pressure meds. Does a month seem like too long to wait? I am asking because I am considering going to a different doctor who can make sure I can have the stress test sooner. Also I was told to call doctor's nurse back today with my blood pressure readings but felt brushed off by her when I did so. I am a 55 year old female. Overweight but very active. Am improving my exercise and nutrition routines. Never smoked. Quit drinking. Long family history of heart disease. Have had hypertension for years. Went on Valsartan in 2015 but had to keep stopping it due to extreme dizziness. Just started Amlopidine, which after one week is improving my blood pressure.

[ayl291]

Depends on how symptomatic you are.   If its bad,  than yes that's too long.

[djd1990]

Basically you'll just need to follow your doctor's advice, as well as your own sense of how you are doing. A stress test is basically going to look for three things: ischemia, arrhythmia, and blood pressure response. They'll be looking to see if your heart is still getting enough oxygen when the oxygen demand increases with exercise, as well as to see if your heart produces any potentially dangerous abnormal rhythms during exercise, along with considering if your blood pressure rises appropriately in response to exercise. If you've had high blood pressure for many years then some mild LVH is generally pretty normal and expected. You may or may not have coronary artery disease (basically "clogged arteries") as someone your age with your history of hypertension, family history, and being overweight may be more prone to having, but there's no direct connection between your having some mild LVH and CAD. You're probably pretty much fine to wait and do what you want, but obviously if your doctor has said to hold back then hold back, and if you feel symptoms (for reasons aside from taking a new medication) then pull back. If you're simply worried and want to hold back your activity level as a precaution then you should do that. There are no guarantees in life, but it's unlikely you have any major issues. Your LVH just reflects you being an upper-middle aged person who had high BP for several years. It, yes, makes you less well off than someone without it, but in and of itself it doesn't indicate that your any sort of ticking time bomb or anything of that nature, far from it. That being said, like I said earlier, there are no guarantees in life, so there could be more severe underlying issues, but the point is that nothing you know so far provides evidence of such.

[anxious in nj]

Thank you for this response. I am actually in the process of switching doctors. I feel fine.  As always I am extremely active. I still plan to have an echo & stress test but I want to make sure I am with the right doctor. I really appreciate your reply. What I need is sensible medical advice such as you have provided. I have extreme anxiety in regard to trusting doctors due to some unpleasant past experiences.

I should mention that my cholesterol is usually in a good range. I eat lots of fresh vegetables and fruit. I haven't eaten meat in decades and have cut out almost all dairy. And of course I also follow a low-sodium diet. It is frustrating to have gained weight in recent years but some of it is due to menopause plus some stress eating (which I obviously have curtailed). My point is that I am not too worried about clogged arteries.  The LVH is the main concern. I should have started on blood pressure meds sooner.

[anxious in nj]

Sorry, meant to say: How long is too long to wait to have a stress test and a echocardiogram?