inverted t wave

[angiecs70]

while being checked for something else, i've been sick for a year and the doctors have been running test after test, it was found on an ekg that i have an inverted t wave.  i did not have this in october.  i am 39.  my grandfather died of a heart attack at 42.  i have chest pain, fluttering, nausea, fatigue and weekness.  i am having a stress echo tomorrow, but my cardiologist said not to worry, it is propbably nothing.  i think i might need a new cardiologist.

[kenkeith]

For some insight.   Reasons for inverted T waves are numerous and may include ischemia, heart attack, hyperventilation, anxiety, certain medications, infections around the heart, blood clot in the lung, electrolyte disturbance (abnormalities in sodium, potassium levels) etc. Additionally, when an EKG is viewed, all of the waves are evaluated, not just one in particular.

It is appropriate for you to have this checked out considering your family history and you should continue to have physical exams regularly.

[angiecs70]

thank you.  we, of course do not know exactly what heart condition my grandfather died of.  it was 50 years ago and my grandmother was just told it was a heart attack.

i had an ekg in october that was normal.  the inverted t wave showed up last week.

i believe my cardiologist is thinking more along the lines of a bad valve.

[grendslori]

Inverted T-waves vcan be the result of many things, some inverted T-Waves are normal. The fact that your grandfather died so young, would make me question if he actually had Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy and he died as a result of a cardiac arrhythmia. HCM can cause all of the symptoms you have described as well as causing inverted T-Waves. It is the depth of the inversion and the height of the QRS Complex that would be important. Let us know how your stress echo turns out.

[angiecs70]

i forgot to mention my heart murmur and history of scarlet fever,