Good turnout when Ester Kringeland gave a lecture on Broken Heart syndrome – when strong emotions cause heart failure

Broken heart syndrome affects women in 9 out of 10 cases. Typically, this affects women after menopause who are exposed to acute severe psychological trauma, such as the death of their spouse, or the serious injury or death of a grandchild. In some people, the condition can be triggered by another serious illness such as stroke. The condition is a stress-induced acute heart failure that causes chest pain and shortness of breath and requires hospitalization for diagnosis and treatment. The condition may be reminiscent of a heart attack, and this must be ruled out by a thorough heart examination at the hospital. The condition can be life-threatening, but 95% survive and make a full recovery. 

Women after menopause are more susceptible to the sympathetic system. During stress, the sympathetic nervous system stimulates both the adrenal glands to produce stress hormones and the immune system to produce inflammatory factors. In acute stress, this may damage the heart as in the case of broken heart syndrome. In chronic stress this may lead to high blood pressure.