Breathless or Fatigued? Why an Echocardiogram Matters More Than Ever

Feeling short of breath on stairs, unusually tired, or noticing swelling in your ankles? These can be early signs of heart failure — and in 2026, getting them checked early is more worthwhile than at any time in the past, because the treatment landscape has changed dramatically. The gateway to that care is a simple, non-invasive scan: the echocardiogram.

What is an echocardiogram?

An echocardiogram (or “echo”) is a painless ultrasound of your heart — no radiation, no needles. Using a probe and gel, it shows your heart’s chambers, valves and pumping action in real time.

Its single most important measurement is the ejection fraction (EF) — the percentage of blood your heart pumps out with each beat, and the key number used to diagnose and classify heart failure.

What is heart failure (and what it isn’t)

“Heart failure” doesn’t mean your heart is about to stop — it means it isn’t pumping or filling as efficiently as it should. It comes in two main forms:

Reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF): where the pump is weakened.
Preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF): where the heart pumps normally but is stiff and doesn’t fill well.

Telling them apart requires an echo.

2026 Update: Effective treatment now spans the full spectrum

What’s new in 2026: For years, patients with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) — nearly half of all heart-failure cases, and common in older adults — had very few proven treatment options. That has changed.

Following updated international heart-failure guidelines, a class of medicines (SGLT2 inhibitors) is now recommended as foundational therapy across the entire ejection-fraction spectrum, including HFpEF, shown to reduce hospitalisations.

In practical terms: an early echocardiogram is now far more actionable, because whatever your ejection fraction, there’s likely an evidence-based treatment path — but only once the type is confirmed.

Why choose a specialist

An echo is only as valuable as its interpretation. At Prime Cardiology on St Kilda Rd, echocardiography in Melbourne — including transthoracic, stress and, where needed, trans-oesophageal echo — is performed with state-of-the-art equipment and read by a subspecialty imaging cardiologist, Dr Vahid Moosavi, who can place your ejection fraction in the full clinical picture and, if needed, extend to cardiac MRI for deeper answers.

Noticing breathlessness, fatigue or swelling?

See your GP, or call Prime Cardiology on (03) 9003 2510 to arrange a specialist echocardiogram.

Call (03) 9003 2510

Disclaimer: General information only! not a substitute for personal medical advice. If you have severe or sudden breathlessness or chest pain, seek urgent care or call 000.

Lp(a): The Inherited Heart Risk Most People Have Never Tested

You can eat well, exercise, and have “normal” cholesterol — and still carry a hidden, inherited risk factor for heart disease that a standard cholesterol test doesn’t reveal. It’s called lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), and in 2026 it’s finally getting the attention it deserves.

What is Lp(a)?

Lipoprotein(a) is a cholesterol-carrying particle in your blood, similar to LDL (“bad” cholesterol) but with an added sticky protein that makes it especially prone to driving atherosclerosis (artery narrowing) and, in some people, aortic valve disease.

Crucially, your Lp(a) level is largely genetic — it’s set by your DNA, stays fairly stable throughout life, and isn’t much changed by diet or standard statins. Roughly 1 in 5 people have an elevated level and don’t know it.

2026 Update: Guidelines now recommend testing — once

What’s new in 2026: Updated international lipid guidelines released across 2025–2026 (including the European ESC/EAS and the new 2026 ACC/AHA dyslipidaemia guideline) now recognise Lp(a) as an important, independent, risk-enhancing factor — and recommend measuring it at least once in every adult’s lifetime.

Because the level is genetically fixed, a single blood test usually tells you what you need to know for life. Australian data confirms testing rates remain low, so many people at risk are still being missed. Promising Lp(a)-lowering therapies are also advancing through late-stage trials, making it more worthwhile than ever to know your number.

Why it matters for you

Knowing you have a high Lp(a) doesn’t mean disaster — it means information you can act on. An elevated level is a signal to manage every other risk factor more aggressively: LDL cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar, smoking and weight. It’s especially worth testing if you have a family history of early heart disease, personal heart disease not explained by the usual factors, or raised cholesterol from a young age.

At Prime Cardiology on St Kilda Rd, Lp(a) and your full cardiovascular risk profile are interpreted by a specialist cardiologist, Dr Vahid Moosavi — turning a single number into a clear, personalised prevention plan, supported where needed by advanced imaging such as a calcium score or CTCA.

Curious about your inherited heart risk?

Ask your GP about an Lp(a) test, or call Prime Cardiology on (03) 9003 2510 to discuss a comprehensive cardiovascular risk assessment in Melbourne.

Call (03) 9003 2510

Disclaimer: General information only — not a substitute for personal medical advice. Please discuss testing and treatment with your doctor.

Your Smartwatch Flagged Atrial Fibrillation, What Now?

A growing number of Melburnians are being told by their watch that something’s wrong with their heart. It’s one of 2026’s most common reasons people search “heart monitor near me” — and it’s worth understanding what these alerts mean, and what a proper diagnostic test adds.

What is atrial fibrillation, and why does it matter?

Atrial fibrillation (AFib) is the most common heart rhythm disturbance — an irregular, often rapid heartbeat that can cause palpitations, breathlessness, fatigue or dizziness, though sometimes it causes no symptoms at all.

It matters because untreated AFib meaningfully increases the risk of stroke, which is why catching and confirming it early is so valuable.

2026 Update: Wearables are useful — but they’re a starting point, not a diagnosis

What’s new in 2026: Consumer smartwatches with built-in ECG are now widely used, and several are approved by Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) as medical-grade for single-lead ECG. They’ve become a genuinely useful early-warning tool — many people first learn of a possible arrhythmia from their wrist.

But a watch alert is a prompt to investigate, not a clinical diagnosis. A single-lead consumer recording can miss episodes, misclassify other rhythms, or flag “possible AFib” that needs confirming with medical-grade, multi-lead monitoring over time.

If your device has flagged an irregular rhythm, don’t panic — but do act. Bring the recording to your GP, who can arrange proper diagnostic monitoring.

How we confirm it: Holter and extended monitoring

Because AFib often comes and goes, the key is recording your heart over long enough to catch the event:

12-lead ECG — a quick, non-invasive snapshot of your heart’s electrical activity.
Holter monitor — a small device worn for 24–48 hours during normal activity.
28-day HeartBug monitor — extended, long-term wearable monitoring that dramatically improves the odds of capturing infrequent episodes that a short test (or a watch) would miss.

At Prime Cardiology on St Kilda Rd, rhythm monitoring is reported by a specialist cardiologist, Dr Vahid Moosavi — so an ambiguous smartwatch alert becomes a clear answer and, where needed, a plan to protect you from stroke.

Had a heart-rhythm alert, or noticed palpitations?

See your GP, or call Prime Cardiology on (03) 9003 2510 to learn about Holter and extended rhythm monitoring in Melbourne.

Call (03) 9003 2510

Disclaimer: General information only — not a substitute for personal medical advice. If you have severe chest pain, fainting, or a sustained racing heartbeat, seek urgent care or call 000.