Broken heart is not a heart attack

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Emotional stress can produce symptoms like a heart attack but recovery can be rapid, according to a new study.
The idea of a 'broken heart' - brought about by grief or stress - has a long history. Now doctors at Johns Hopkins Medical School show that there really is such a thing as a broken heart, but it's not the same thing as a heart attack.

They studied a group of 19 patients who had been subjected to sudden stress, such as news of a death, having to speak in public, appearing in court and so on. All had heart attack symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath and even heart failure. But further investigation showed this was not a heart attack at all and the patients soon recovered.

The researchers think that stress causes a sudden rush of chemicals called catecholamines that can 'stun' the heart and cause symptoms like a heart attack. But these were all healthy subjects with no signs of heart disease. Further work is needed to see how catecholamines affect the heart and whether the shock causes any long term damage.

Source
New England Journal of Medicine online 10th February 2005