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Community Echocardiogram Program Reveals Cardiac Risks, with Anita Radhakrishnan, MD
Anita Radhakrishnan, MD, leads a community screening effort to detect early heart disease in underserved populations in Pittsburgh.
A community-based heart screening initiative in Western Pennsylvania is helping uncover significant rates of undiagnosed structural heart disease (SHD) in underserved groups, particularly African American women. The Every Heart Matters Initiative, backed by community grants, provides free screening echocardiograms to residents in low-income neighborhoods via churches, high-rises, and federally qualified health centers.
Among the first 200 participants, 67% were African American, 72% were women, and the average age was 61. One in four participants had abnormal findings, prompting referral to cardiology. Notably, 16% of African American women screened were found to have pulmonary hypertension (PH)—a rate far exceeding the 1–4% typically reported in the general population.
“Echocardiograms, which are just ultrasounds, are the workhorse of all cardiac testing as an extremely valuable test,” Anita Radhakrishnan, MD, a cardiologist at Allegheny Health Network Cardiovascular Institute, told HCPLive. “A lot of information can be obtained from an echocardiogram, and right now, electrocardiogram (EKGs) and biometric screenings are part of routine screenings accepted by the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), but echocardiograms are not.”
Many participants had symptoms or risk factors but never sought evaluation due to a lack of insurance, language barriers, or competing life priorities. The program was specifically targeted at people with no known SHD who either have symptoms, risk factors, or a long lapse in cardiac follow-up.
The program helped bridge that gap by offering not just testing, but follow-up communication, CD copies of echo images, and help with referrals, regardless of insurance status. All patients with abnormal results received a phone call, a written report, and a CD with imaging files they can share with any provider.
“We give them a full report, and I actually call every abnormal test result patient and explain the test result to them and explain why I feel they need to see a doctor, a cardiologist, and make sure they see their primary care physician,” Radhakrishnan told HCPLive.
Beyond the clinical impact, the initiative is designed to be sustainable. Fellows perform the echocardiograms as part of their training, and the program is set to continue under the general cardiology fellowship. Radhakrishnan noted her hope that this model can scale nationally through cardiology training programs.
“All of our general fellows perform echoes as part of their training, and I think it’s a great way to get them involved in community work and serve underserved populations, with an opportunity to see how they can help them,” Radhakrishnan told HCPLive. “Almost every city has anywhere from 5 to 10 programs that have trainees and cardiology fellows. I think this is the first, very easy step that we’re showing here in Pittsburgh, they could replicate across the country.”
Radhakrishnan reports no relevant disclosures.
