Broken heart syndrome more common in women心碎也是一種病 女性更容易患心碎綜合癥

Think "broken heart" is just a figure of speech? Think again. A new study shows that severe emotional distress, such as the kind experienced after a breakup or the death of a loved one, can cause what doctors call "broken heart syndrome" - especially in women. Women are seven to nine times more likely to suffer from the condition than men, the study found.覺得“心碎” 只是一個比喻修辭說法？現在你需要改變這種想法。最新研究顯示，嚴重的情感創傷，如分手或者愛人死亡的這種經歷，都可能會造成“心碎綜合癥”，尤其是對女性來說。該研究顯示，女性患上“心碎綜合癥” 的情況是男性的7到9倍。

People with the syndrome experience heart failure or heart attack-like symptoms. The condition usually resolves within weeks, with no lasting damage - but in rare cases it proves fatal.心碎綜合癥患者的癥狀類似于心力衰竭和心臟病。癥狀會在幾周后消退，不會造成長期的傷害，不過也有極少數心碎終合癥造成死亡的病例。

Japanese doctors first recognized the condition around 1990. They nicknamed it "Takotsubo cardiomyopathy" - tako tsubo are octopus traps that resemble the unusual pot-like shape of the stricken heart. 心碎綜合癥最先是由日本醫生在1990年左右發現的，他們給這種癥狀起了個綽號叫：“章魚壺心肌癥” 。人在悲痛欲絕時誘發此病，患者的心臟看起來很像日本人用來捕章魚的一種口小底寬的蛸壺。

The classic case is "a woman who has just lost her husband," said Dr. Mariell Jessup, a University of Pennsylvania heart specialist who has treated many cases of the syndrome.賓夕法尼亞大學的心臟專家Mariell Jessup曾經治愈過很多例心碎終合癥，他表示經典案例是一個剛剛失去丈夫的女性。

Cyndy Bizon feared the loss of her husband, Joel, when he suffered a massive heart attack in 2005. The Maine woman collapsed at a nurse's station as her husband was wheeled past her into the operating room. After joining him in coronary care, both Bizon and her husband survived.來自美國緬因州的女性Cyndy Bizon在2005年差點失去了丈夫Joel，他因為突發心臟病而住院。在丈夫被推進手術室的時候，巨大的恐懼讓Cyndy昏倒在護士站。 幸運的是，她和丈夫一起在心臟病加護病房治療了一段時間，后來兩個人都活下來了。

Why does broken heart syndrome occur? A big emotional shock - even a good one, like winning the lottery - triggers a rush of adrenaline and other stress hormones that cause the heart's main pumping chamber to balloon suddenly and malfunction. Tests show dramatic changes in rhythm and blood substances typical of a heart attack but none of the artery blockages that typically cause one.為什么會發生心碎綜合癥？劇大的情感沖擊會誘發腎上腺素和其他的壓力荷爾蒙激增，這樣就會造成心臟的主心室突然膨脹并無法正常工作。測試發現了心跳頻率和血液物質的重大變化，這些都是心臟病的典型癥狀。不過心碎綜合癥并沒有發現心臟病的另一典型癥狀動脈阻塞。

A trawl of records of 1,000 hospitals revealed 6,229 cases in 2007. Only 671 of these involved men. It was three times more common in women over 55 than in younger women. And women younger than 55 were 9.5 times more likely to suffer it than men of that age, an American Heart Association conference heard.2007年，在美國1000所醫院中共發現6229例心碎綜合癥，其中只有671位患者是男性。美國心臟協會的會議數據顯示，55歲以上的女性比年輕女性患病的可能性要多兩倍，而55歲以下女性的患病可能則是同齡男性的9.5倍。

No one knows why women are more vulnerable but sex hormones may be at play or men’s bodies may be better at handling stress. 目前還不清楚為什么女性更容易得心碎綜合癥。不過專家們認為性激素可能起著一定的作用，也有可能是因為男性的身體更擅于處理壓力。

The conference also heard that while heart attacks happen more in winter, broken heart syndrome is more common in summer. About 10 percent of victims will have a second episode sometime in their lives. 會議報告還顯示，與心臟病常發生在冬季不同，心碎綜合癥則更容易出現在夏季。10%患心碎綜合癥的病人以后還會出現復發的現象。

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