Stroke Risk High in People With Irregular Heart Beat

Nearly a two third of a million people in Britain are at an increase risk of suffering from stroke due to an irregular form of heart beat, a new research conducted by The Stroke Association warned. Over 750,000 people suffer from the condition known as atrial fibrillation (AF), in which the number of heartbeats sometimes climbs as high as 140 beats per minute. The researchers say that this is the earliest sign that the patient is in risk of suffering from a stroke later in his life.

Lead researcher Steve Benveniste said that majority of the population had no idea that such a risk existed and said that educating them about their condition should become a priority in order to reduce the number of stroke related incidents, a point concurred by Professor Gregory Lip, an expert on stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation and Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Birmingham University.

“We could prevent around four and a half thousand people from having a devastating stroke every year if more people had greater awareness of atrial fibrillation and sought out the appropriate treatment from a medical professional”, Lip said.



Source-Medindia