An outburst of anxiety or anger could trigger a heart attack two hours after a very emotional incident. Researchers at the University of Sydney found that the risk of an attack could increase by 8.5 times a couple of hours following a flare-up of intense anger. This study substantiates unconfirmed claims that links rage with vulnerability to heart attack.

A consecutive case series was conducted on patients at the Royal North Shore Hospital who were experiencing symptoms of a heart attack. Angiography results confirmed blockage in the coronary artery. The patients were asked about their preoccupation or activities for the past two days before starting to feel the indications of a heart disease. Around 2 percent experienced symptoms that were prompted by anger.

Thomas Buckley, the study’s lead author and researcher at the Royal North Shore Hospital, said that although the absolute risk of an anger-triggered attack was quite low, results proved that the patients were at greater risk of an attack. Anger outbursts were provoked by several triggers; 42 percent of which were heated arguments with other people while family disputes comprised another 29 percent. The rest were incited by circumstances at work and road rage. Extreme anxiety also increased the risk of a heart attack.

The possibility of a heart attack does not necessarily occur while an individual is very angry. Since an outburst is likely to raise blood pressure, speed up heart pulse, constrict blood vessels and cause coronary thrombosis, an attack could happen within a couple of hours even if the person seem to have calmed down. From the scale of 1-7, the researchers marked 5 as the minimum level referred to when describing intense anger that multiplies the risk.

Findings in this study published in the European Heart Journal: Acute Cardiovascular Care emphasises the importance of preventive strategies to protect people who are highly susceptible to heart attack during periods of extreme anger. Senior author Geoffrey Tofler mentioned some of these potential approaches such as avoiding circumstances that incite anxiety and training oneself to reduce stress. Anger frequency assessment could help in management. Risk can also be reduced by observance of a healthy lifestyle.

To contact the writer, email: jm_panganiban@hotmail.com