in 2009 i had my mitral valve replaced and have been doing fine so far, well yesterday, my ekg showed a \"old heart attack\", and now my dr. wants to do an echocardiogram to make sure the ekg is correct.  Would an ekg show a false reading? & is my dr. doing the correct procedure by doing an echocardiogram?
Hi, welcome to Chat Doctor. Thanks for writing to us. The EKG is always a first-hand tool in cardiology. EKG never shows false reading. But following an evidence of heart attack it is always advisable to do an ECHOCARDIOGRAM. It confirms the presence of any Regional Wall Motion Abnormality(RAMA) resulting due to a heart attack.Also, an ECHO provides an idea about the pumping ability of the heart. If the ejection fraction in the ECHO report comes out to be above 60%,it can be considered that the pumping ability of heart is okay.  More you have mentioned that a mitral valve replacement was done in 2009. The ECHO can provide useful information about the proper in situ position of the valve and its proper functioning. Hope I have answered your query. Stay fit, good luck.