A new Swedish study says that lung function has a direct link to heart health. Read on to know how unhealthy lungs can lead to sudden cardiac death.
In today’s world, cardiac problems are one of the leading causes of death across societies. This happens due to negligence and sometimes due to lack of awareness. But what do you do when you have no symptoms of cardiac ill health? Sometimes, it may just creep up on you silently and you may experience a sudden cardiac arrest without any warning symptoms. Such attacks can be fatal. These sudden a sudden malfunction in the heart. There may be many causes for this. According to new research presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress, people with measurably worse lung function are more likely to suffer such deaths. This study was undertaken by researchers from Lund University in Sweden.
Lower lung function increases risk by 23 per cent
For the purpose of the study, the researchers analysed a group of 28,584 middle-aged people with no known heart problems. All participants of this study were from Malmo, Sweden. Researchers followed them for 40 years. By the end of the study, they saw that measurably lower lung function in the middle-aged participants was more strongly related to suffering a sudden cardiac death. In fact, the increase in risk was 23 per cent. Death due to the non-fatal coronary events in such people later on in life was significantly lower at 8 per cent.
Lung function and heart health
According to the researchers, although sudden cardiac deaths are more common than generally believed, not much is known as to who is more at risk among the general population. But they say that there are links between lung function and heart health. Hence they proceeded with this study to investigate whether measurable differences in lung function could offer clues about the risk of sudden cardiac death.
Regular screening can bring down risk
Researchers say that the results of this study suggest that regular check-up of middle-aged people’s lungs can help spot those who have a higher risk of sudden cardiac death. This will help such individuals and their doctors to take preventive steps and reduce the risk of this fatal event.
Risk same is smokers and non-smokers
Another interesting thing observed by researchers is that though smoking affects both lung and heart health, the pattern of risk remained even in people who had never smoked. Researchers say there is a clear link between lung health and sudden cardiac death. The risk of fatal coronary events is also significantly higher in people whose lung function is moderately lower but may still be within a normal range.
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This post first appeared on The Health Site
