Dear Doctor Column, October 2, 2003

Ear Lobe Creases Don't Mean You Have Heart Disease

Question:

Is it true that creases on your earlobes mean you have heart disease? My dental hygienist pointed them out to me and said I should see a doctor about my heart. What is she talking about?

Answer:

Creases on one or both earlobes do not mean you have heart disease. The possible association between earlobe creases and coronary artery disease first garnered attention almost 2 decades ago when the results of an 8-year, 108-person study by hypertension specialist Dr. William Elliott, proposed a link between distinctive, diagonal creases in human earlobes and heart disease. Dr. Elliott found that individuals with a crease in at least one earlobe were much more likely to die from heart disease than those whose ears were crease-free. The earlobe-heart mechanism was unclear, but Dr. Elliott suggested several possible explanations, including the loss of elastin, which both causes creasing in the earlobe and contributes to the hardening of arteries.

In a follow-up study of 1,000 people admitted to the medical service of a large hospital, Dr. Elliott's results seemed to confirm his earlier studies. Of the 373 people with earlobe creases, 275 (74%) had coronary artery disease, and 98 (26%) did not. Of the 627 people with no earlobe creases, 101 (16%) had coronary artery disease, and 626 (84%) did not. Some additional studies, but not all by any means, have found similar results.

The reason for any such association between earlobe creases and heart disease is unknown. Interestingly, in Dr. Elliott's larger study, earlobe creases were not linked with other known risk factors of heart disease, such as a family history of premature heart disease, cigarette smoking, high blood pressure, elevated blood cholesterol, diabetes, obesity, or an inadequate exercise program. Some health experts believe that both skin creases and heart disease are simply more common later in life and are not related in any other way.

Until larger, more definitive studies are available, the presence of a distinctive earlobe crease may indicate the need for closer attention to all possible risk factors for heart disease. In fact, earlobe creases or not, everyone should eat less fat, maintain a reasonable weight, stop smoking cigarettes, get their blood pressure and cholesterol checked, and exercise regularly to help lower their risk of developing coronary artery disease, stroke, hypertension, and other chronic diseases.

The presence of earlobe creases, in the absence of other known risk factors, is not proof that you have, or ever will develop, heart disease. Also, your family physician or a cardiologist is in a better position to advise you on a possible heart condition than your dental hygienist.