An unusual case of ST elevation in a 39-year-old man

A 39-year-old man presented to a university hospital emergency department with anginal chest pain, ventricular tachycardia and ST elevation in the anterolateral leads (V3 to V6, I and aVL). Due to discrepancies in the history and physical examination, thrombolysis was withheld until a past electrocardiogram could be obtained, which was unchanged. Subsequent investigations revealed no evidence of myocardial necrosis, and the patient was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. This is the first reported case of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with ST elevation as the predominant electrocardiographic abnormality. In patients with discrepancies in the clinical presentation, it is essential to obtain past elecrocardiograms to ensure appropriate utility of thrombolysis.