Resting ECG
12-Lead Electrocardiogram
A quick, 12-lead snapshot of your heart's electrical activity — used as a baseline and to screen for rhythm or conduction abnormalities.
About Resting ECG
A resting electrocardiogram is a 12-lead recording of your heart's electrical activity. We place ten small adhesive electrodes on your chest, arms, and legs, and the recording itself takes about 10 seconds.
The result is a printed tracing showing the rhythm and electrical conduction across each region of your heart — the standard, decades-old foundation of cardiac assessment.
Painless, non-invasive, no preparation required.
The clinical significance
An ECG provides a fast, low-cost screen for rhythm abnormalities, conduction delays, prior silent myocardial events, and several structural heart problems that don't always cause symptoms. A baseline tracing is also valuable: future ECGs are far easier to interpret when there's a known prior to compare against.
On its own, an ECG is not a comprehensive heart assessment — many serious problems can have a normal ECG, and ECG findings alone rarely tell the whole story. But as part of a broader evaluation that includes CAC scoring, advanced lipids, and clinical assessment, it adds meaningful information that's hard to get any other way.
For active patients and athletes, a baseline ECG is also a sensible starting point before any future symptom-driven workup.
Specific markers and outputs
- Heart rate and rhythm
- Conduction intervals (PR, QRS, QT/QTc)
- Axis and chamber enlargement
- Evidence of prior ischemia or infarction
- Repolarization abnormalities and patterns suggestive of structural heart disease
Who we typically order this for
- Anyone undergoing a thorough cardiovascular evaluation as part of a longevity-focused workup.
- Patients with palpitations, occasional irregular heartbeats, dizziness, or unexplained shortness of breath.
- Patients with a personal or family history of arrhythmia, sudden cardiac events, or structural heart disease.
- Active patients and athletes who want a baseline for future comparison.
The practical experience
- Plan on about 10 minutes total, including the few minutes it takes to place the leads.
- You'll lie quietly on a table while the recording is taken. The recording itself is over in about 10 seconds.
- No preparation, no fasting, no recovery. You can return to normal activity immediately.
Reading the numbers in context
Each ECG is reviewed by your physician in the context of your full evaluation — symptoms, family history, lipids, CAC, and fitness data.
A baseline ECG typically doesn't need to be repeated unless something changes clinically.
Frequently asked
Will an ECG catch all heart problems?
No — many serious cardiovascular problems can produce a normal resting ECG. It's one piece of a complete evaluation, not a substitute for one. That's why we pair it with CAC scoring, advanced lipids, blood pressure assessment, and clinical history.
Does it hurt?
No. The electrodes are small adhesive patches. The recording itself is silent and painless.
Do I need to fast or stop medications?
No. Take your usual medications and eat normally.
How is this different from a stress test?
A resting ECG records electrical activity at rest. A stress test records it during exertion to look for changes that only appear with exercise. They answer different questions; we use whichever is appropriate based on your situation.
Resting ECG is part of the Executive Evaluation.
Included with the Executive Evaluation. Comprehensive patients can add it through ongoing care. Every test we order is interpreted in person by your physician and integrated into a single, written plan — not handed back as a stack of numbers.