A study among almost 50,000 people worldwide has identified DNA sequence variations linked with the heart’s electrical rhythm in several surprising regions among 22 locations across the human genome. The variants were found by an international conso…
New techniques now being used at UCLA allow doctors to more precisely target certain areas of the heart to stop ventricular arrhythmias — serious abnormal rhythms in the heart’s lower chambers — in high-risk patients.
Generally, ar…
The rate of life-threatening heart rhythms more than doubled among New York heart patients the month after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, researchers have reported. The study evaluated patients with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). An ICD is an electrical generator the size of a pocket watch that is inserted into the heart to monitor heart rhythm. It detects life-threatening abnormal rhythms, called arrhythmias, and delivers an electrical shock to restore normal rhythm.