Losing a loved one may really result in heart being broken

Research: Death of a partner linked to irregular beat risk

The death of a significant other may actually break your heart, new research suggests.

People who lose a partner are at an increased risk of developing an irregular heartbeat, the new study has found.

The condition, known as atrial fibrillation, is itself a risk factor for stroke and heart failure.

Researchers said the risk appears to be greatest in younger people after the death of their loved one. The risk also increases when loss is least expected.

Danish researchers collated data from almost 89,000 people diagnosed with atrial fibrillation between 1995 and 2014 and compared it to 886,000 healthy people.

Some 17,478 of those diagnosed with atrial fibrillation had lost their partner as had 168,940 of the comparison group.

After examining a number of factors, the researchers calculated that the risk of developing an irregular heartbeat for the first time was 41% higher among those who had been bereaved.

The study, published in the journal Open Heart, found that the risk was highest eight to 14 days after the loss, after which it gradually declined.

Risk was also heightened when the partner’s death was deemed to be unexpected – those whose partners were relatively healthy in the month before death were 57% more likely to develop an irregular heartbeat.

The authors cautioned that no cause and effect can be inferred from the observational study but said that bereavement is known to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, mental illness, and even death.

Acute stress may disrupt normal heart rhythms and prompt the production of chemicals involved in inflammation, they suggested.

“The loss of a partner is considered one of the most severely stressful life events and is likely to affect most people, independently of coping mechanisms,” they wrote.

“In this large population-based study, the severely stressful life event of losing a partner was associated with a transiently increased risk of atrial fibrillation, which lasted for about one year.

“The elevated risk was especially high for those who were young and those who lost a relatively healthy partner.”