An electrocardiogram, also called an EKG or ECG, is a diagnostic procedure used to uncover potential irregularities in your heart function. Training for football frequently causes body transformations that contribute to EKG-related changes, and many competition-level players have abnormal EKG readings. Still, abnormal EKG findings have other potentially serious causes unrelated to football.
EKG Basics
During an EKG test, your doctor measures the electrical output of your heart with the help of wired electrodes that lead from your chest, upper arms and legs to a specialized device. Your heart's electrical signals control your heartbeat, and an EKG procedure provides information on the number of times your heart beats per minute and the stability of the timing between each heartbeat, as well as the timing and strength of the signals that flow inside and between the various sections of your heart.
Football-Related Causes
Football players and other trained athletes often have EKG readings that would appear abnormal in non-athletes, according to the authors of a study published in 2009 in "Clinical Cardiology." Reasons include the relatively large body sizes of many players, their relatively high physical capabilities and the training routines they use to reach and maintain competition-ready physical conditioning. Fully 79 percent of college football players tested during the study had at least one abnormal EKG result in their history. These abnormalities appeared in a wide range of testing categories commonly used to gauge cardiac health.
Other Potential Problems
Your doctor can use an EKG reading to diagnose or review the effects of a wide variety of heart-related problems, including birth defects, abnormal heart enlargement, heart valve disorders, irregular heartbeat, poor blood flow to your heart muscle, heart failure and heart attack. If you have a heart problem revealed by an EKG or any other procedure, your doctor may ask you to avoid playing football or engaging in any other activity that generates significant heart stress. This is especially true if you have certain symptoms, including extreme breathlessness after physical exertion and unusual pain or pressure in your chest, shoulder, arm or neck.
Considerations
While training requirements largely explain the altered EKG findings in football players, additional testing is needed to determine whether these heart-related changes are permanent or disappear when a player stops competing, the authors of the 2009 study note. Since an abnormal EKG reading can indicate the presence of many ailments unrelated to football, no player should ignore an abnormal reading or assume no other serious problems. Consult your doctor for more information on the potential causes of unusual EKG readings in football players and other athletes.
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