All you need to know about Takotsubo cardiomyopathy.
Know your ailment well, so you can manage it better!!
Here we come with Apical ballooning syndrome today!
What is Broken heart syndrome?
Broken heart syndrome is also known as Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, Apical ballooning syndrome, apical ballooning cardiomyopathy, stress-induced cardiomyopathy, Gebrochenes-Herz-Syndrome, or simply stress cardiomyopathy.
Broken heart syndrome is a temporary heart condition that’s often brought on by stressful situations and extreme emotions. The condition can also be triggered by a serious physical illness or surgery. It may also be called stress cardiomyopathy, takotsubo cardiomyopathy or apical ballooning syndrome.
People with broken heart syndrome may have sudden chest pain or think they’re having a heart attack. Broken heart syndrome affects just part of the heart, temporarily disrupting your heart’s normal pumping function. The rest of the heart continues to function normally or may even have more forceful contractions.
The symptoms of broken heart syndrome are treatable, and the condition usually reverses itself in days or weeks.
What causes Broken heart syndrome?
It remains unknown the precise cause of broken heart syndrome. A release in stress hormones, such as dopamine, is believed to temporarily destroy certain people’s hearts. It’s not fully clear how these hormones can hurt the heart or whether anything else is responsible.
It has been suspected that a transient constriction of the heart’s large or small arteries plays a part. There may also be a variation in the heart muscle function in individuals who have broken heart syndrome.
An intense physical or emotional occurrence is frequently accompanied by Broken Heart Syndrome. Several likely causes of broken heart syndrome are:
- The death of a favourite one
- A scary psychiatric condition
- Domestic mistreatment
- Losing or even winning a great deal of cash
- Robust claims
- A Party of Surprise
- Speaking openly
- Work failure or financial challenge
- About Divorce
- Physical stressors such as an asthma attack, infection with COVID-19, fractured bone or major surgery
- It is also true because, by triggering a surge in stress hormones, these medications will rarely
- induce broken heart syndrome.
Drugs that may lead to fragmented heart syndrome include:
- Epinephrine, used for the prevention of extreme allergic reactions or a serious asthma attack
- Duloxetine (Cymbalta), a drug used in people with diabetes to relieve nerve disorders or to treat depression,
- Venlafaxine, a medication for depression, (Effexor XR)
- Levothyroxine (Synthroid, Levoxyl), a drug prescribed to persons whose thyroid glands do not function properly
- Unprescribed or illicit stimulants, such as cocaine and methamphetamine
It is believed that the body releases stress hormones when you have broken heart syndrome, which momentarily curbs the capacity of your heart to function as well as it can, and a portion of your heart called the left ventricle gradually weakens and stops pumping properly. Experts also agree that the coronary arteries, which provide the heart muscle with oxygen, spasm. Heart discomfort may be caused by this. Circulation issues will result from the momentary “freezing” or “stunning” of the heart.
It can be as fatal as a heart attack if broken heart syndrome is not treated.
What are the symptoms of Broken heart syndrome?
Canker sores inflict inflammation in the local body that can be irritated quickly. This is the only signs of basic cases, however, the pain may induce feelings of being fed up with the mouth ulcer.
Popular characteristics of canker sores include:
- Well-defined, oval, less than an inch across, and typically shallow on the mucosal surface of the mouth’s lining.
- Before they emerge, there is a tingling feeling occasionally.
- A white or yellow-grey middle surrounded by a red border of inflammation.
- Sometimes, with time, they turn to grey.
- Typically on the front of the lips, on the floor of the mouth, on the underside of the lip (labial mouth), on the inside of the cheeks (buccal), or on the front or side of the tongue.
It often impacts the gums and the surface of the back portion of the mouth, which is relatively rare.
It usually lasts 1–2 weeks prior to recovery.
Symptoms may include, in some, more serious cases:
- Sluggish sensation
- Swollen nodes of the lymph
- And fever
What are the risk factors of Broken heart syndrome?
A variety of known risk factors for broken heart syndrome are known to occur, including:
Genders. Women are affected much more often than men by the disease.
Age. The bulk of patients who have broken heart syndrome tend to be older than 50.
A history of brain disease. There is a higher chance of broken heart syndrome in individuals who have neurological problems, such as a brain injury or a seizure disorder (epilepsy).
A mental illness, past or present. You probably have a greater chance of broken heart syndrome if you’ve had illnesses, such as anxiety or depression.
What are the complications of Broken heart syndrome?
Broken heart syndrome is fatal in rare circumstances. Most individuals who undergo broken heart syndrome, however, heal easily and do not have long-lasting consequences.
The following are other complications of broken heart syndrome:
- Fluid backup to the lungs (pulmonary oedema)
- High pressure in the blood (hypotension)
- Disturbances in your pulse
- Cardiac insufficiency
- It is also likely that once you have another traumatic incident, you will again have broken heart syndrome. The chances of this happening, though, are poor.
ow is Broken heart syndrome diagnosed?
When the doctor believes that you have a broken heart syndrome, he or she will make a diagnosis using certain examinations and tests:
Personal history and physical exam.
Your doctor may want to know about your medical history, in addition to a regular physical test, especially if you have ever had signs of heart failure. In addition, patients who have broken heart syndrome have no signs of heart failure until they are diagnosed with broken heart syndrome. Your doctor would probably want to know if you have lately undergone any significant stress, such as the loss of a loved one.
Electro-cardiogram (ECG).
A technician will put wires on your chest to monitor the electrical impulses that make the heart pound in this non-invasive exercise. These electrical signals are captured by an ECG and will help your doctor identify irregularities in the rhythm and function of your heart.
Echocardiography.
In order to see whether the heart is swollen or has an irregular appearance, the doctor may even prescribe an echocardiogram, a sign of broken heart syndrome. This noninvasive test, which involves a chest scan, provides detailed pictures of the shape and operation of your heart.
Blood tests.
Blood tests. People with broken heart syndrome also have larger concentrations of compounds in the blood called cardiac enzymes.
Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
For this test, inside a long tube-like machine which generates a magnetic field, you lie on a table. To help your doctor determine the heart, the magnetic field generates informative images.
A type of dye that is visible on the X-ray scanner is pumped into the blood vessels of the heart during a coronary angiogram. Then an X-ray scanner captures a series of photos (angiograms) instantly, allowing the doctor a clear peek at the interior of the blood vessels.
Coronary angiogram.
A coronary angiogram is frequently administered to rule out a heart attack and broken heart syndrome often mimics the signs and symptoms of a heart attack. There are also no blockages of the blood flow in patients with broken heart syndrome, while people who have suffered a heart attack usually have a blockage that is noticeable on an angiogram. Your doctor will check to see if your signs and symptoms are caused by broken heart syndrome until it’s clear that you’re not getting a heart attack.
What is the treatment for Broken heart syndrome?
For broken heart syndrome, there’s no typical care. Once the condition is apparent, therapy is equivalent to treatment for a heart attack. Although they recover, several persons remain in the hospital.
Your doctor will typically recommend cardiac drugs for you to use whilst you are in the hospital, such as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) antagonists, angiotensin II receptor blockers, beta-blockers, or diuretics, until it is apparent that broken heart syndrome is the cause of the symptoms. These drugs help to reduce the heart’s workload when you are resting and can help avoid further attacks.
Within a month or two, several people make a complete recovery. Around four to six weeks after the initial symptoms, you will definitely need to get another echocardiogram to make sure your heart has healed. Tell the doctor how long you will need to begin taking these drugs after you have stabilised, as you can avoid taking most medications after three months.
Procedures that are often used to cure a heart attack, such as stent insertion and balloon angioplasty, or even surgery, are not effective in the treatment of fractured heart syndrome. These treatments target blocked arteries that are not the cause of the syndrome of the broken heart. But, in order to diagnose the source of chest pain, coronary angiography should be used.
How to prevent Broken heart syndrome?
Often, broken heart syndrome occurs again, but a second occurrence would not occur in most people. Most physicians prescribe long-term therapy with beta-blockers or similar treatments to block the heart’s potentially dangerous effects of stress hormones. While there is actually no research to support this, understanding and handling stress in your life can also help avoid broken heart syndrome.
References:
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https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/takotsubo-cardiomyopathy-broken-heart-syndrome
https://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/can-you-die-broken-heart#1
https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/circulationaha.106.669341
