In a new study, researchers found that controlling blood pressure and blood sugar levels can help prevent heart block, a common form of heart rhythm disorder.
It may also prevent the need for a pacemaker.
The research was conducted by a team at UC San Francisco.
Heart block occurs when electrical conduction is impaired between the heart’s four chambers, most often by fibrosis or sclerosis.
It is often felt like the heart skipping a beat.
It is estimated that 3 million people worldwide use pacemakers, and 600,000 pacemakers are implanted annually.
Although pacemaker is a common treatment and low-risk procedure, it can bring serious complications.
For example, generator charges carry a high risk of infection in and around the heart.
In the study, the team examined more than 6,000 Finnish patients using the Mini-Finland Health Survey.
They found that more than half of heart block cases were caused by high blood pressure or high blood sugar.
In addition, older age, being male, history of heart attacks and congestive heart failure in these patients were linked to heart block.
This is the first community-based study that examines the possible link between heart disease risk factors and heart block.
The team suggests that future work needs to test other populations to confirm the findings.
The new finding may persuade people with high blood pressure or diabetes to receive and continue their treatments.
The senior author of the study is Gregory Marcus, a UCSF Health cardiologist.
The study is published in JAMA Network Open.
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