Anger a Deadly Sin for Heart Patients

Nov. 12, 2006 — -- Tightness in the chest. Sweaty palms. A racing pulse. These consequences of rage are familiar to anyone who has ever let their anger get the best of them.

For certain heart patients, however, sudden death can be officially added to the list, according to a new study.

The findings were presented today at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions in Chicago.

The study looked at heart patients who have been fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), a tiny device implanted into the heart muscle that automatically delivers a pulse-stabilizing jolt of electricity whenever the heart's rhythm goes out of sync.

In the study, patients were told to call and report their experience any time that their ICD delivered a shock. They were also asked to fill out a questionnaire about their experience and their emotions before the shock.

Following the questionnaire, researchers reviewed the information gathered from the patients' ICDs before and during the event. This information was used to determine if study participants were more likely to experience a life-threatening arrhythmia within an hour of an episode of moderate, or greater, level of anger.

"Prior studies have shown that anger affects the heart's electrical properties, making it more vulnerable to dangerous rhythm disturbances," said Dr. Christine Albert, lead author of the study and director of the Center for Arrhythmia Preventionat Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. "Our 'Triggers of Ventricular Arrhythmia' study examined this theory in a population of people who have ICDs, making it possible to look for a connection between a patient's self-reported level of anger and the development of life-threatening heart rhythms."

A total of 199 cases of ventricular fibrillation (VF) or ventricular tachycardia (VT) cases were recorded in the study. These conditions are fatal if not treated with a shock within minutes. And of these episodes, 15, or 7.5 percent, were preceded by at least moderate levels of anger within the hour before ICD discharge.