Abnormal Ekg

Posted by P. Hardy on August 06, 1999 at 14:38:58
I am a pilot and recently had an ekg which showed, on the bottom line readout, a q wave with no evident p wave prior to the q. the dr. said I had suffered an infarction.. after sent to a cardiologist, he found no heart damage or scar.. what would cause this abnormal reading if indeed the heart is, as the cardiologist says, normal??
Thanks

Posted by CCF CARDIO MD - DLB on August 06, 1999 at 15:20:20
Dear P
The ekg is not the most sensitive test for determining if a heart attack has occurred. Sometimes it will indicate an abnormality where there isn't one, and vice versa. An echocardiogram or cardiac angiogram provides much more definitive information. Especially in the case of a pilot, your doctors were probably being extra careful.
I hope this has been useful. I wish you the best of luck. Feel free to write back.
Information provided here is for general purposes only. Specific questions should be addressed to your own doctor. If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.