Around the early 1990s, Japanese researchers demonstrated for the first time that suffering from severe emotional or physical stress can cause a sometimes temporary, sometimes lethal heart disease called shattered heart syndrome or takotsubo cardiomyopathy .
Typically characterized by dyspnea, chest pain, transient changes in heart rate and changes in blood pressure, takotsubo cardiomyopathy can be mistaken for a heart attack ; however, unlike myocardial infarction, it does not cause cardiac muscle necrosis and, with the necessary help, it can be completely cured.
But what exactly does therapy consist of?
First of all, it is necessary to restore the contractile function of the heart, so that the blood returns again to adequately oxygenate the organs and tissues of the body. To succeed in this purpose, doctors use:
- ACE inhibitor drugs, which serve to improve the strength of myocardial contraction.
- Beta-blocker drugs, which serve to slow down the heart rate (when it is high).
- Calcium-antagonist drugs, which serve for the normalization of cardiac rhymes.
- Aortic counterpulsator, which, inserted into the aorta, serves to improve the functionality of the left ventricle.
