Seeking advice on fainting, ECG results and doctors (also I'm new... hello!)

First of all, I'm new, so I'll start off by saying hello!

I'll start by saying that I'm 19, have been living alone for a year, am in generally good health. I'm vegetarian and a healthy weight (5'9" and 135 pounds). I don't smoke and am generally healthy.

My issue is that I've had fainting problems for a few years now. I also get heart palpitations (I don't drink coffee anymore because it makes it worse). And I'm often dizzy.

Two years ago my friend's mom took me to a walk in clinic because I had fainted at her house. I had not been to a doctor for over 10 years before that.

The doctor and the clinic ordered and ECG. They gave me a copy, but I never got to see the doctor and have him explain it to me.

The results were as follows:

BORDERLINE ECG - Prelim. -MD must be review
- Sinus tachycardia
- Borderline Q waves in the lateral leads

I thought nothing of it, since I assumed if it was serious, the doctor would have called me.

A year ago, I got a family doctor (yay!). I told her about the fainting, and she ordered blood tests. Long story short, my iron and hemoglobin were very low, and after a few months of iron supplements and diet change, they started going back to normal.

Now that my anemia is under control, and I'm STILL fainting, the doctor ordered an ECG to rule out other causes. She doesn't know about the ECG I did two years earlier.

So here are my questions:

Should I bring my old ECG from two years ago to show my new doctor, even if I'm getting another one done anyway?

What do the results of my first test mean?

Could my fainting have to do with my heart, since it obviously wasn't the anemia?

Avalina -
Welcome to the forum.

Fainting isn't too unusual in young women. My son's girlfriend used to pass out after getting up from sitting or lying down. It was a low blood pressure thing, didn't need treatment except for warning not to get up too rapidly. The heart has to beat faster if blood pressure drops. Tachycardia means the heart is beating faster than 100 beats a minute.

That said, you should definitely get your diagnosis from a doctor. We're just patients here with limited experiences. Tell the doc anything that might be helpful. An old ECG might show a pattern if it's continuing. You didn't mention if you have low blood pressure. You're fairly tall and thin, so that might figure in too.

hey im 25 and my sister is 28 and she faints too but usually when shes under a lot of stress.are yours when u are under a lot of stress?I was getting really terrible dizzy spells and i went for a CAT scan and nothing came up. I ended up going for a heart stress test, and an echocardiogram aka heart ultrasound. is that what an ECG is or is that where they put the sites around your body? When I did the stress test and the one where they put wires on my body, nothing came up unusual. but the Echocardiogram should signs of heart issues. maybe you should try the echocardiogram? also, fainting can be from many things. do you get really bad urinary infections? i used to get really dizzy when i had bad urinary issues. ims orry i dont know if any of this helps

Hello!

I just want to say thanks for the replies! I haven't been online in a while.

My family doctor was glad to have the old EKG to compare the new one to. She said there were "changes" in the latest EKG. And I noticed it said something like ST wave changes or possibly T changes if the "S" was really just a scribble. There were other notes but I never got to see it up close :p

She also said she heard a murmur and that my iron is still low (but not low enough to need to start those stupid pills again! Yay!)

Then she sent me to a cardiologist, but she said it was probably nothing to worry about (I didn't ask her what "it" is, but she didn't seem too worried).

The cardiologist didn't seem worried either, but he ordered a 24-hour Holter monitor test and an echo-cardiogram.

I feel like they're giving me contradictory information: on the one hand, they tell me not to worry and it's nothing, on the other hand, they keep sending me for more tests! What's up with that?

Glad to hear it Avalina that so far it is all good. The tests seems to never end. I really think a part of it is to make us feel like they are doing something. My cardiologist tells me I am fine, but I keep having spells. I go in, and I get the 24 hour monitor again.. They read it, and tell me it's nothing again... It all comes down to us needing to relax and accept our condition. Crappy part is it is easier said that done. Keep us posted to your status!