When you are under intense stress after a death or divorce or even a sudden joy, and feel as if your heart has been broken, you are not exaggerating. It is in fact realistic, and science has succeeded in proving it, not just a popular statement that reflects some exaggeration.
The scientists said that when a person is subjected to severe pressure after painful events such as death, separation or depression, or even after the sudden joy of winning a large prize, the changes occur in his heart and suffer a pain similar to that associated with a heart attack.
Women are the most affected by the disease, he said, adding that what happens is that a person feels severe pain in the chest because of the high rise in stress hormones, in addition to feeling shortness of breath, heartbeat disorder .
These may occur even if the person has no history of heart disease and can lead to severe heart failure.
Recovering from the "broken heart" is short and takes days or weeks, and is unlikely to recur again, except in very few cases, while recovering from a heart attack takes a month or more.
Doctors may initially make a mistake by diagnosing the condition as they may consider a heart attack, especially as the symptoms and test results look similar, but with some tests and attention to detail, the difference can be detected.
The "broken heart" tests show dramatic changes in heart rhythm, as well as blood changes such as those of a heart attack, but unlike heart attack, there is no evidence of clogged arteries in the "broken heart".
The tests that show the difference between the two diseases, "EKG", a test that records the electrical activity in the heart, in addition to the blood test, which will show lack of heart failure.
The tests will prove that there is no blockage in the coronary arteries, and abnormal enlargement and movement in the left ventricle of the heart.
