could this really be my ef?

[chestpounding]

I am 45 years old, about 6 foot tall 222lbs. I lift weights a couple of times a week and run on an elipticle machine for about 30 to 45 min a couple times a week. Sometime when I push it hard and my heart rate gets to about 170 and I feel a little weak and some difficultl breathing. I told my doctor about this and she sent me for a stress test. the stress test showed that I had a right bundle block but nothing else unusual and my asked me if I wanted to have it checked further, at first I said no but my wife talked me into seeing a cardiologist. He sent me for a 2d echo. well I went back yesterday and he said that my ef was 20-25% and that I have chronic systolic heart failure and wants to do a cath in a couple of weeks. Is it possible to have these numbers and do all the things I do? I just went on a 15 mile mountain bike ride with my son last weekend , I sometimes walk the 27 flights of stairs to the tower of my work. I don't see how my heart could be this bad. Am I in denial or could the test just be wrong?

[ed34]

Yes I agree. Even if the results are the same, it would be worth it to see if any new information comes up.

[chestpounding]

Thanks for the comments. I've seen the echo and he showed me the "problems" and they do look like what is ddescribed in the texts that I have read. As for them being the wrong ones, I don't see how, I had them done at the same hospital and they are all on the computer system, but hey it's as good as anything else I can think of. My heart was only 3mm oversize and it clearly seems to be pumping good and yet he wants to up my meds? Are the risks from the meds worth it? Maybe I just have a bigger heart then most people?  My wife thinks I should get a second opinion and I think maybe she's right, what do you think?

[ed34]

To be honest, it sounds like they got your echoscan report mixed up with someone else. What about the severe systolic heart failure? It certainly doesn't sound as though your echo results were from your heart. I would be asking some very serious questions. Glad your angio showed no issues, now you can get back to cycling with confidence :)

[chestpounding]

This whole thing is driving me crazy! I went today and had a cardio cath done and it show everything was great, no blockage and over 6L cardiac output. How does this figure go with the 20-25% EF ? Anybody have any sort of answer? help!

[chestpounding]

According to my reg doc it has always been 120-130 over 80-85 cholesterol stays just below 200 but, it runs 70/30 in the wrong direction. The cardio doc was more concerned about my 116 pulse rate ,I told him that it has always been around 100 even in high school, he nust nodded and said it could be a sign that your body is trying to compensate. It makes me wonder how long I have had this problem.

[ed34]

Well there can be a 10% error on echoscans, but that still officially leaves you in heart failure. What I was saying about your heart isn't to do with your fitness. You haven't been in heart failure for 30 years, at least I hope not. It could be the level of fitness which has kept you so well now. Believe me, if they didn't believe the results, you wouldn't be having an angiogram. I can tell you that I was very fit 7 years ago, doing martial arts and lots of running along with very physical jobs. I was 46 and had a heart attack which totally surprised me. When they looked at my arteries, we were all shocked at the state of them. Some of the blockages were 100% and been there for years. I got through it because I opened up natural bypasses to get around those blockages. I must have been developing those blockages for at least 10 years judging by the length of them, making me 36 and yet I had no idea. What's your average blood pressure? and when was your last blood cholesterol test?

[chestpounding]

It is usually between 150 and 160. You don't think that the test could be wrong? I would think it a little late to worry about the training my heart, I've been doing all of those things for over thirty year on a regular basis, I think that horse is already out of the barn. He didn't say anything about any other abnormalities it just has a low EF. He seemed quite puzzled by the whole thing also.

[ed34]

EF is not to be associated with your exercise tolerance because the two have no real correlation. Saying that, I wouldn't want to be doing cycle rides and lots of stairs climbing with an EF that low. The reason being, I wouldn't want my heart to adapt, i.e. start to over enlarge and get even weaker. Just as some people don't feel any symptoms during a heart attack, some people don't notice a significant drop in EF. Out of interest do you know your heart rate when climbing stairs or cycling?