Perhaps doctors have discovered the secret of a broken heart repair in a global clinical trial.
Hundreds of thousands of people around the world live with Takotsubo, known as broken heart syndrome, which causes the heart muscle to change the shape and suddenly weaken. It is usually run due to extreme emotional or physical stress, such as the loss of a member of his family.
Patients may suffer from symptoms similar to a heart attack and face twice the risk of death early compared to the general population. Some failure in the heart, which leads to symptoms of a question such as fatigue, as well as average life expectancy. There is no treatment.
But now, doctors may have the answer. I found the first random experience governed in the world of broken heart syndrome that 12 weeks of designed cognitive behavioral therapy, or an exercise program for the recovery of the heart that includes swimming, cycling and air representations, helped the hearts of patients recover.
Details of the penetration were revealed at the annual conference of the European Society of Heart Diseases in Madrid, the largest heart conference in the world.
“In Takotopo’s syndrome, there are serious effects on the heart, which may not return to normal. We know that patients can be affected by the rest of their lives and that the health of the heart in the long run is similar to the people who survived a heart attack,” said Dr. David Gamble, the clinical lecturer in the heart disease at the University of Aberdeen, who presented the research.
Gamble said the experience of the experiment highlighted the importance of the “brain heart axis”.
“This indicates that cognitive behavioral therapy or exercise can help patients all the way to recovery. Both are costly effective interventions, and we hope that more studies will use them to help this disadvantaged group.”
The study included 76 patients suffering from Takotopo syndrome, 91 % of them are women and an average age was 66. Patients were randomly assigned to receive behavioral cognitive therapy, exercise program, or standard care. Everyone has received all other care and treatment recommended by a cardiologist.
The CBT group had 12 individual weekly sessions, specifically adapted to its condition by researchers, as well as daily support if necessary.
The exercise group has gone through a 12 -week exercise course, which included cycling machines, mills, exercise and swimming devices, and gradually increases in the number of sessions and intensity every week.
The researchers used an advanced imaging technique called MRI 31, which allowed them to study how patients’ hearts are produced, stored and used. In groups of cognitive therapy and exercise groups, there was a significant increase in the amount of fuel available to patients ’hearts to allow them to pump, which was unprecedented in people with usual care.
The average distance that patients with CBT can walk in six minutes from 402 meters to 458 meters. People who completed the exercise program managed to walk an average of 528 meters in six minutes, compared to 457 meters at first.
There was also an increase in Vo2 Max for patients – the maximum oxygen consumption in their body at the peak of exercise – by 15 % in the CBT group and 18 % in the exercise set. The maximum walking and VO2 increases are signs of improvement in health.
Experts said the results indicate that treatments can produce long -term benefits such as reducing symptoms and the risk of death for those who suffer from broken heart syndrome.
“Takotopo syndrome can be a devastating condition that could really affect you in a weak time if it is running at a major life event,” said Dr. Sonia Babu Narayan, the clinical director at the British Heart Foundation, who funded the trial.
“People may not be surprised that the exercise program helped patients on the heart, but it is interesting that this study also showed that cognitive behavioral therapy has improved the function of the heart and the fitness of patients. More research is needed to see if these methods improve the long -term survival or symptoms.”