Question:

I am athletic.  Should I be concerned about a false positive result on EKG?

Sir, I’m 62 yrs old and for the last 15-20 years, I have had a false positive reading on my EKG. The answer that I got from the cardiologist is that my heart muscle was strong because of my athletic background. And that is why I was getting that reading. Should I be concerned? I was hospitalized in 2013 with heart pain from stress. I am diabetic and I feel that my sugar/glucose when it is high is causing my heart to hurt. I thank you in advance or any insight you can give me.

Submitted by Art from Washington on 07/07/2014

Answer:
by George Younis, MD

Art,
I don’t have enough details about your history to really comment on your situation. Certainly athletes can have certain EKG patterns, and diabetics can have chest pain from coronary disease. These questions are probably best answered by your actual cardiologist.