Are earlobe wrinkles diagnostic tools?

DEAR DR. GOTT: Are creases in the earlobe always a precursor to heart trouble?

DEAR READER: In a word, no. For more than 50 years (52 to be exact), there has been debate over whether creased earlobes can be tied to coronary-artery disease. In fact, the New York Times printed an article in 1984 on the subject. Physicians in Long Island reported to the New England Journal of Medicine that there was a significant statistical link in men with creased earlobes being diagnosed with heart disease. A crease is identified as a diagonal line that begins where the lobe attaches to the head and then runs backward toward the lower edge of the lobe.
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