The average age of patients was 67 years. We recruited 162 patients with confirmed atrial fibrillation from 22,144 general hospital medical admissions over a three year period. But between 20, we conducted a study at the Aga Khan University Hospital Nairobi. Kenyan data on this heart condition is scarce. What’s the situation of atrial fibrillation in Kenya? The real danger with atrial fibrillation is that it may lead to a stroke. When the heart is affected, some of the prominent symptoms of the disease includes an irregular heartbeat, easy fatigability, fainting or dizziness. This function originates from the top side of the heart known as the atrial pacemaker that sends signals to the bottom of the heart, ventricles, in a coordinated fashion, known as normal sinus rhythm. The normal heart rate lies between 60 and 100 beats per minute. How does the heart work and how does this disease affect its functionality? Some lifestyle conditions like excessive alcohol intake and abnormalities of the thyroid function can also lead to atrial fibrillation. Rheumatic heart disease which is caused by an untreated streptococcal throat infection is another culprit that affects the heart this way. Valvular heart disease may require surgical treatment to correct the defect.Ītrial fibrillation frequently develops in patients with severe rheumatic heart valve disease involving the mitral valve. The valves may either be too narrow to open fully, or they are unable to close completely thus blood flow in and out of the heart is uncoordinated. In valvular heart disease, a defect or damage to one of the four heart valves allows blood to leak abnormally. Lack of treatment can lead to heart attacks. In coronary heart disease, your arteries are narrowed or blocked by a build-up of cholesterol. There’s a strong association with high blood pressure, ageing, diabetes mellitus, valvular heart disease and coronary artery disease. Though the exact cause isn’t clearly understood there’s evidence that the abnormal electrical signals arising from the left atrium lead to the chaotic, disorganised beats that are characteristic of atrial fibrillation.
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