As if suffering from hemochromatosis wasn’t bad enough, a new study published in the International Journal of Cardiology reveals that it can directly lead to fatal heart rhythm abnormalities.
This is yet another reason to address your hemochromatosis before it’s too late.
The researchers knew that previous studies demonstrate a relationship between hemochromatosis and abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias).
The problem is that hemochromatosis belongs to a group of disorders that dump abnormal substances into cellular and intercellular spaces, causing heart problems without any of the normal causes of heart disease being present. In this case, the abnormal substance is iron.
They wanted to know how many hemochromatosis patients developed arrhythmias, so they investigated the factors that contribute to arrhythmias.
They checked records for people who had been hospitalized with hemochromatosis, obtained from the National Inpatient Sample between 2016 and 2018.
Using the available information, they made several discoveries:
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1. 11.7% of the hemochromatosis patients suffered from heart arrhythmias.
2. Compared to patients below age 40, those between ages 40 and 59 had a 2.3 times higher risk of arrhythmias, while the risk was almost five times higher for those above age 60.
3. The risk was the highest for males and whites and lower for females and Hispanics.
4. The only modifiable factors that protected against arrhythmias were high income levels, general good health, and a positive attitude.
5. Arrhythmias were related to longer hospital stays and higher medical charges.
6. Those with arrhythmias had a higher risk of death than those whose hearts remained unaffected.