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Thread: ECG still Abnormal

  1. #1

    ECG still Abnormal

    Hello, I was wondering if anybody can shed some light on this for me. I am very anxious about it :(.

    Here's my story, I'm a 26yr old female, obese with history of heart attack in my family (my dad, my aunt, my uncle recently and my granddad) they are still alive except my granddad. I don't smoke or drink. I am trying to be healthy, I have struggled with my weight since childhood.

    I was doing the New You ketonic diet about 2 months ago. I have done a ketonic diet before the year previously. 5 days in I experienced chest pains. I was thinking it was anxiety as I suffer from anxiety and depression.

    Well I came off the diet because I was scared and having panic attacks, went to the doctor with right sided chest, shoulder, shoulder blade and neck pains.

    My doctor wasn't available so had to see a new lady doctor. She didn't seem too worried and gave me soothing gel for my shoulder... I asked could I make an appointment for bloods and ecg. I have never had a blood test or ecg before. A week later I have it and the nurse did the the test twice. Looking anxious she said she wanted to show the doctor (the main doctor) and she came back and told me because of my family history, having chest pains and abnormal ecg he (the doctor) said I would need to go to hospital right away. They gave me a letter with my info to give to the er reception and off I went.

    I was seen very quickly, I think because of what it potentially could have been. They did blood tests and an xray, blood pressure and pulse. All was fine, they scheduled a stress test for the following week. I managed to complete the stress test, amazingly as it was very hard for me, I saw my bpm was 200!

    When I got my results hours later after blood pressure and pulse monitoring, the hospital doctor said there was "nothing of significance". He didn't explain further. He asked if I still had pain in my chest and to be honest my back and shoulders and whole upper body were sore but what stood out was the burning pain in my shoulder blade. He quickly did blood tests for blood clot in lungs and it was fine. He said it was mostly my anxiety and to try to relax and get help for my anxiety.

    Following week I was at my doc for a follow up on my blood results, he said all was fine but my liver was off (I don't drink or take paracetamol so I think it's weight related). I told him about the pains I was still having, particularly my left shoulder blade and he kind of ignored me. I told him how my anxiety had become bad and I was previously on lexapro (for 2yrs) he interrupted me and said he would just put me back on it. Anyway he said in two wks to come back for another blood test and follow up ecg. That was today. He was out on holiday so it was just lady doctor, whom many people were complaining about, including my taxi driver! So the nurse does my ecg, it's still abnormal... she said it has improved.

    I don't know what it means or how that works but the fact it is still abnormal scares me a lot... The nurse said she would give the results to lady doctor and she would ring me this evening if she felt it was necessary as she was very busy with full clinic waiting room and her the only doctor in (there are usually 3 including my own). The nurse also told me to make an appointment in 2 wks time with for another follow up with my doctor and the lady doctor never rang.


    I told the nurse about my anxiety and that the doctor (who is also her husband) has re prescribed me lexapro. I didn't tell her however, that I have not been taking it because it runs risk of messing with heart rhythm and because of my abnormal ecg I'm afraid to take it.

    She said hopefully in two weeks time it will kick in and I will be feeling better. I feel so stupid for not saying anything but I felt ashamed and embarrassed to say I hadn't been taking it and afraid that it would make my doctor angry.

    So I hope some one, anyone can help me here, if you have the same experience or know more about it as I have not got a clue. I am so anxious and feel like crying and am afraid I might die... I was praying and hoping my ecg would be normal today so I could stop being in fear. So sorry about how long this is as well. :( please help if you can.

  2. #2

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    I would be grateful if someone could reply to this. Thanks.

  3. #3

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    Hi! I know it's been a couple of days and hope you've not been overly worried.

    An electrocardiogram (EKG/ECG) is a wonderful test that allows paramedics and other medical professionals to visualize the electrical activity in your heart. Many EKG machines print possible points of concern on the strip or monitor. The machines are often very sensitive to even slight variations and human interpretation is needed to ascertain whether there is a problem. You do not, as far as I saw, say what the abnormality was. Did they tell you, by any chance?

    My advice is to trust what you've been told. The blood work you had would show changes in your cardiac enzymes if you'd had any sort of cardiac emergency. The stress test you had later would also have brought any problems into the clear. As far as your heart rate during the test (my apologies if this insensitive), obesity and a sedentary lifestyle, to say nothing of anxiety, can make our tickers work a little harder during bouts of exercize and the whole point of the stress test is to attain a rate close to your maximum.

    Please rest assured any nefarious problems should long since have been diagnosed. The symptoms you describe are all common to anxiety and panic disorders. Please also follow the orders of your physician. He has education and experience most of us lack and would not prescribe medication without analyzing the risks and benefits thereof. The side effects of a medication have a very, very small chance of occurring and the worst ones almost never do.
    Last edited by Dissension; 23-06-14 at 10:38. Reason: Phone screen typo. :3

  4. #4

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    Thank you very much for replying!

    I wasn't told what exactly was abnormal about it, only that it was abnormal. I didn't think to ask at the time. I'm sure you are right, if it was anything serious something would have been done right away. I will be having a follow up appointment with my doctor next week and ask him about it and take his advice.

    Your reply has helped me relax a bit for which I am very grateful. I am still anxious and have pains but I am trying to tell myself it's anxiety.

    Again thank you very much for getting back to me! :3

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Posts
    110

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    I have a VERY abnormal ECG. My heart started going funny one day and I ended up in A&E. When they did my ECG and it came back so abnormal I was told I had heart disease. I have since seen a cardiologist, had echo, stress, holter and CT Angiogram and he has told me everything is reassuring but i still cant shake it. I wish it was just normal and i could move on with my life. I have t wave inversions in my inferolateral leads and st segment depression which on all account is not a good ecg to have :( Hope your other one came back normal?

  6. #6

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    Sorry to hear about your ECG worries. I know how stressful it can be!
    I don't know exactly why mine is abnormal, I didn't ask and they didn't elaborate. I don't really know what t wave inversions in inferolateral leads and st segment depression means but I think it would make me anxious if my doctor told me that was on my ECG purely because I don't understand it!

    I think if you have had all these tests and the doctors are saying you are fine then you should try to trust them. I know it is difficult to, my anxiety makes me doubt what I'm told and still think something is wrong even if tests are ok. Coincidentally, my older sister (31) has an abnormal ECG. My getting checked prompted her to get checked as heart problems run in my family. She had a cardiologist appointment and they said she was fine even though her ECG was seen as abnormal! I think it might be possible to have what reads as an abnormal ECG but still be fine.

    I have been trying not to think about my ECG being abnormal, as every chest twinge I get would then send me into panic. It is always in the back of my mind. I am waiting on a cardiologist appointment as well as other specialist appointments for other health issues, which could take awhile. I just want to get it done and dusted. I just hope that when I see the cardiologists they are thorough and everything comes back fine and I can get on with things. All this and I seem to have something wrong with my liver as well that keeps showing up on blood tests (I don't drink a drop or use painkillers) so I'm quite anxious at the mo' not to mention I am moving house as well and it's adding to the stress!

    I think the best thing to do is to try not to think about it. Try to distract yourself. If they found something wrong with your heart I am sure they would tell you, they'd have to!

  7. #7

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    I just have another question if anybody can answer. My doctor referred me to a chest pain clinic when I told him I was worried about my ecg being abnormal and still having chest pains. This was months ago. I got a call from the chest pain clinic nurse and she told me that all they would be doing is stress test and blood tests again so she cancelled my referral. I talked to my doctor today and he didn't seem worried, I asked what was abnormal about my ECG and he said it was "just some flat T waves" I asked is that seen as an "normal abnormality" so to speak and he said yes. So can anyone tell me if that is so? I am still getting chest pains and shoulder pains etc and I am worrying because a family history rich in heart attacks etc My uncle recently had one, he's okay now thank god.

    I'm just really anxious because everywhere I've read people have had more tests done to be safe ie halter monitor, echocardiogram etc. Should I be worried my doctor isn't bothered or should I take it to mean I'm fine even though every ecg I've had has been abnormal?

    Any help would be appreciated!

  8. #8

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    I had an ECG about 2 weeks ago, I asked the nurse doing it if it was OK. We all ask don't we?
    Her reply was hardy reassuring, "have you made an appointment to see the doctor?"
    My GP was on holiday, so the appointment was 2 weeks later.
    When I saw my GP, he thought that it was pefectly normal based on my clinical history.

    I wonder just what lessons are to be learned from this?

  9. #9

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    Thanks for replying Spirit2534 I'm sure it must be normal for me. I'm was just anxious as I'm not a very healthy person and there is a history of heart problems in my family.

    What an unhelpful nurse, that would have made me horribly anxious. I'm glad it all turned out ok for you. Thankfully the nurse at my doctors surgery is very ice and helpful.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Posts
    3,735

    Re: ECG still Abnormal

    I was scared witless by an A&E nurse who said my ecg showed severe atrial fibrillation. As i have pulsitile tinnitus in my left ear I can hear my heart beat 24/7 and it was perfectly steady to me, I queried this and asked if it could have been the machine or leads and she said no it def was AF. I had to wait an hour for a Dr who said that I didn't have AF at all and it was a faulty lead on the ecg machine!!!!!!!!!! They did it again and it was perfeclty normal just fast.

    Another thing they do is say abnormal but this does not mean it is something that is dangerous. I have ectopic heartbeats and atrial tachycardia and although both of these are harmless they are classed as harmlessly abnormal.

    Sounds like you have having everything done to make sure nothing nasty is going on. Good luck.

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