Physical assessment

An assessment and physical examination may help your doctor to tell if you have a heart problem. During an assessment, your doctor will:

• ask you about your medical history and your family history
• ask you questions about your lifestyle, such as whether you smoke
• listen to your heart through a stethoscope, and 
• take your blood pressure and pulse.

All this provides vital information to help your doctor decide whether you have a heart problem and if you need other tests. And if you already have heart disease, having an assessment or check-up can help to monitor how you are doing.

Heart Health Checks

A heart health check, sometimes called a cardiovascular risk assessment, is an assessment to find out about your risk of developing cardiovascular disease.  The check helps your doctor or nurse work out your future risk of having a heart problem.

Your doctor or nurse can advise you on what you can do to keep your heart healthy. A heart health check can also help your doctor or nurse to decide if you need treatment - such as medicine to protect your heart.

A heart health check involves:

• asking you questions about your lifestyle - for example, if you smoke, and how much physical activity you do
• asking if there is any history of heart disease in your family
• doing a blood test to measure your cholesterol and sometimes your blood glucose
• measuring your blood pressure
• taking your weight, height and waist measurements

Find out more

• Keep your heart healthy booklet
• Tests for heart conditions booklet
• Look out for our Heart Health Roadshow - free lifestyle checks in your area