Fainting with exercise

My 20-year-old son keeps fainting with exercise.  He has no other health conditions, and has had a stress echo, basic blood work, chest x-ray.  He has seen 2 cardiologists and  has only been diagnosed with a high voltage ekg.  He does not use drugs or alcohol.  He fainted twice in his Ju Jitzu class and today playing flag football.  He often skips breakfast, and probably doesn't drink enough fluids.  Does this sound like people with low blood sugar, thyroid problems, or should we keep pursuing things with a cardiac specialist?

[stevie_wonder]

Yes, I would keep pursuing this with an Electrophysiologist (cardiologist that specializes in heart rhythm disorders). Fainting with exercise is not normal. Regular cardiologists often overlook electrical heart problems in young healthy people. These diseases can be overlooked on ECGs unless looked at by a specialist. There are several different heart conditions that should be ruled out on your son. Our family has Long QT Syndrome and my son fainted with exercise before we were diagnosed. Our cardiologist first told us we were all fine but I knew different and now me and my children all have it. Check out the SADS www.sads.org or CARE www.longqt.org websites for info and specialists in your area.
Does your family have any history of sudden death, fainting or seizures? Sometimes people will have seizure-like activity when they faint because of lack of oxygen in the brain from an arrhythmia.

[crystalhanzelka]

Sounds like Long Qt to me, too.

[Encephalomalcia]

I, too, was a fainter when I was a teenager and early twenties.  After riding bike, I would stop the bike and faint.  It turns out that I have an adrenal problem where exercise, licorce, caffeine brings my heart rate up extremely fast at a fast rate.  I have not been on a bike in 24 years now and cannot run and have to be careful not to walk too fast.  The cardiologist told me that it will not shorten my lifespan and not to worry about it.   Just another possibility for fainting that you can discuss with the his doctor.      

[grendslori]

You NEED to see another cardiologist. Long Q-T Syndrome shows up on an EKG as a timing between those two complexes. The elevated voltages are caused by the time it takes for the blood to cross the heart walls. The thicker the heart walls, the higher the voltages. There is a possibility that your son has a severe form of Cardiomyopathy. My daughter had this problem with her old heart (she had a transplant) and her voltages were off the EKG page; they were running her EKG's on a 1/4 Standard!  This problem in some young people can cause ventricular rhythm problems and can cause sudden death. (As an example, athelets that die suddenly on the basketball courts) I can tell you that there are a lot of doctors who don't do well telling parents this kind of news and that may be why some doctors seem to be making light of this. Don't let your son engage in sports until he has been seen by a CAPABLE doctor. It is NOT NORMAL for this to be happening to your son. He is more than likely passing out due to a lack of blood flow to the brain, because his heart is comprimised. Keep us all updated on his progress. If you can, try and get him seen at a University Hospital, they tend to see more patients with these types of problems.

[Shannon1022]

Thank you to all who have given me some ideas we should look into.  My son had a Tilt Table Test on Friday.  He blacked out for several minutes.  He took the test where he goes to college and I didn't get to go and ask the questions a 20-yr-old doesn't ask.  He said they didn't give him a name for the problem, but perscribed 25 mg Atenold, told him to not get dehydrated, and not to "over-exhert" himself (whatever that means :-/ )  He of course, thought that meant he could still play flag football the next day!  I suggested he not play yet- am I being too overprotective? I researched that the drug is a beta blocker often perscribed for Long QT, just like everyone here has been suspicious of.  They said a lot of young men have this problem and often out-grow it.  He is going to an Electrophsiologist here in our town in two weeks, so we can get a second opinion, get a NAME for this problem, and I can ask some questions.  Do people often continue their same level of activity if he does have Long QT?  Thank you for your help