hiya,

im new on here and i worry alot about my heart. I have today been to docs and they said the ecg i had done was fine, but on my notes i saw 'abnormal repolarisation.'

Anyone know what this is/means??? i daredn't google!

thanks
cas

Hi Cas,

Your test is likely unremarkable and we're accustomed to telling folks when we think there's a problem at hand so nothing to worry about in your case. There are many things that can cause abnormal repolarization and in most cases, it's due to the effects of medication of various types. I will give you a little crash course in physiology so you can understand what is taking place, but you shouldn't let you imagination run away with you. You have to remember that if you were looking at a printout of your ECG, the computer has a built in program that analyzes the test strip and provides us with general possibilities, but not diagnosis. We rarely give much consideration to the machine's response other than to interpret why the computer may have elected various differential conclusions. Nothing to worry about and thank goodness we doctors haven't allowed the computers to take over the job of accurately diagnosing patients.  

In the resting state, cardiac muscle cells are polarized due to gradients established by the active inward transport of potassium ions and the outward transport of sodium ions. Various stimuli-including drug-induced effects-can cause shifts in these gradients, producing a decrease in the internal negative membrane potential. This process is known as depolarization.

As the cells repolarize, another electric current is produced, similar to the first but moving in the opposite direction. The magnitude and direction of the electrical activity occurring during depolarization and repolarization can be detected by electrodes attached to the skin; this information is then amplified and displayed on the ECG as waves and complexes. So there you have it in basic terms; depolarization and repolarization of cardiac cells in heart tissue.

Please feel free to post your concerns and more specifically, if you care to discuss it, tell us what led you to your doctor's office to obtain an ECG? I'll be glad to take your questions and help you to find answers that you can understand and that will provide relief from your worries if possible.

Best regards and Good Health