Beattie says he has been lucky after Valentine’s Day heart operation
BBC presenter and former Scotland rugby star John Beattie has revealed he “could have died” after developing a heart abnormality.
The former British and Irish Lion, 62, revealed he underwent a procedure on Valentine’s Day to cure an atrial flutter.
If left untreated, the condition can lead to a stroke.
Beattie returned to work on Friday, a week after surgery, to present BBC Scotland news show The Nine.
He was supposed to have started his new Radio Scotland show, Drivetime with John Beattie, last Monday. Instead, he will return today and discuss irregular heartbeat with electrophysiologist Dr Gary Wright, who carried out the procedure, and urge listeners to check their own hearts.
He said: “I have been lucky. If I hadn’t gone to the doctor’s I could have ended up with a clot.
“A lot of people will have died because they didn’t take heed of an erratic heartbeat.
“My message is if you think your heart rate feels a bit weird, get it checked because you could be at risk of a stroke if you leave it too long.”
Beattie said he realised something was wrong around nine months ago when he felt his heart was “totally out of control” while cycling.
He borrowed a heart monitor from pro rugby side Glasgow Warriors, which measured over 200 bpm during one run.
He said: “I went for a run the following day and it said 205. I was scared enough to go and see a doctor.
“The doctor tested me and said you’ve got atrial flutter and it’s totally fixable.”
Beattie was put on a blood thinner for seven months while he waited for surgery at the Golden Jubilee National Hospital in Clydebank.
The operation took just 25 minutes under local anaesthetic.
Dr Wright said: “Most people with atrial fibrillations do not think they have any symptoms. The important thing to remember about these abnormal rhythms is that they can cause strokes, and strokes can be devastating.”