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Cycling grandad 'grateful' to be alive after heart rate skyrocketed
Cycling grandad 'grateful' to be alive after heart rate skyrocketed

BBC News

time2 days ago

  • Health
  • BBC News

Cycling grandad 'grateful' to be alive after heart rate skyrocketed

A 74-year-old grandad who had an alarming wake-up call when his heart rate skyrocketed while cycling has said he is "so grateful" to be enjoying the sport again after being fitted with a life-saving medical Cookson from Lancashire had been training at the Manchester Velodrome when he fainted, and later discovered he had a serious heart condition. "I came off and looked at my sports watch which read 'new heart rate record – 238 bpm' and I thought 'oh, that's not good'. And it wasn't going down," he Cookson has since been fitted with a implantable defibrillator to prevent future episodes and told other cyclists "if you get the opportunity for a health check, take it". Mr Cookson, a former head of British and world cycling bodies, saw his heart rate hit 238 beats per minute after the training session in Manchester in said: "I was cycling and started feeling strange. I didn't know if I was in a dream, if I was asleep – then I hit the floor."The veteran rider fainted and had to wait about 15 minutes for his heart rate to return to normal. At the time of his collapse, he had been fitted with a heart monitor as he was one of 108 men taking part in a study of the hearts of older male endurance athletes. 'Stop riding' Researches from the University of Leeds were able to record exactly what was happening to his heart during the incident, and warned him to immediately stop said: "The next day, I got a call. They said, 'Stop riding your bike, don't do anything more strenuous than walking until we can get you in here because we think you need an ICD [implantable cardioverter defibrillator].'"It was revealed he needed the device because he had experienced ventricular tachycardia, an abnormally fast heartbeat where the ventricles do not pump blood around the body effectively, which can lead to cardiac arrest. Mr Cookson has since returned to cycling after being fitted with the implantable defibrillator, which will shock his heart if an abnormal rhythm reoccurs. The university's study found nearly half of older male endurance athletes over 50 had scarring in their hearts which increased the risk of these episodes. Dr Peter Swoboda led the British Heart Foundation-funded study and said the results "shouldn't put people off regular exercise" as the study focused on a select group and not all had scarring. He said: "In our study, the athletes who experienced dangerous heart rhythms often had symptoms first."I'd encourage anyone who experiences blackouts, dizziness, chest pain or breathlessness, whether during sport or at rest, to speak to their doctor and get it checked out."Mr Cookson said: "When I started out in cycling, people thought that taking part in endurance sport would as good as guarantee your heart would stay healthy. "Over the past few years, we've learnt that it's not quite that simple." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists
Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

Powys County Times

time6 days ago

  • Health
  • Powys County Times

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

Older male endurance athletes may be at higher risk of heart scarring and related complications, according to a new study. Sudden cardiac death is a 'leading cause of mortality' in athletes, experts said as they set out to investigate whether endurance athletes had heart scarring and linked heart rhythm problems. Academics studied 106 former competitive cyclists and triathletes who exercise for more than 10 hours a week for at least 15 years. Experts from the University of Leeds scanned their hearts and had an implantable loop recorder fitted to assess their heart rhythms. They found that 50 of the 106 athletes (47%) had scarring on their hearts, particularly in the left ventricle – the main pumping chamber of the heart. This compares to 11% of 27 non endurance athletes studied for comparison. During a two-year follow up period they found that 22% of the athletes had an abnormal heart rhythm, according to the study which was funded by the the British Heart Foundation and published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging. They concluded that the athletes who had heart scarring were over 4.5 times more likely to experience an abnormal heart rhythm episode – which is linked with an increased risk of sudden cardiac arrest – compared to those without scarring. It is thought that among endurance athletes scarring could be caused by levels of exercise when the heart has to work even harder to pump blood. Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, clinical director at the British Heart Foundation and consultant cardiologist, said: 'There's no doubt that exercise is good for our hearts – it helps to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol, manage our weight, and it boosts our mental health. 'But in some veteran male athletes, this early research suggests that intense exercise over many years may have affected their heart health. 'More research in veteran endurance athletes – both in men and women – will be needed to identify the small number of people who have the kind of heart scarring, together with other risk factors, that mean their life could be saved by having an implantable defibrillator.' One of the athletes who took part in the trial was Brian Cookson, keen cyclist and former president of British Cycling and Union Cycliste Internationale – cycling's world governing body. The 74-year-old grandfather from Whalley, Lancashire, said the trial could have saved his life. While training at the Manchester Velodrome he started feeling unwell and his sports watch recorded his heart rate had reached 238 beats per minute (bpm), and stayed that way for around 15 minutes. 'I was pushing it a little bit on the track, but not absolutely full gas, as we say in cycling,' Mr Cookson said. He contacted the team involved with the study who reviewed data from his implanted device to record his heart rhythm. They were able to see he had suffered an episode of ventricular tachycardia – an abnormally fast heartbeat where the heart's ventricles contract too quickly and do not pump blood around the body effectively. 'The next day, I got a call. They said, 'Stop riding your bike, don't do anything more strenuous than walking until we can get you in here because we think you need an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)',' he said. He was fitted with one of the devices in August last year which shocks the heart if it goes into an abnormal rhythm. Mr Cookson, who is still cycling, said: 'I keep a closer eye on my heart rate now and if I'm getting to 150bpm I'll start backing off. 'I'm so grateful to have been part of this study. It might well have saved my life. 'Without it, I might have carried on pushing myself until something more serious happened.' Dr Peter Swoboda, associate professor in cardiology and consultant cardiologist at the University of Leeds, who led the study, said: 'In our study, the athletes who experienced dangerous heart rhythms often had symptoms first. 'I'd encourage anyone who experiences blackouts, dizziness, chest pain or breathlessness, whether during sport or at rest, to speak to their doctor and get it checked out. 'These results shouldn't put people off regular exercise. 'Our study focused on a very select group, and not all the athletes involved were found to have scarring in their hearts. We can all benefit from being more active, and this study is an important step towards helping people take part in sport as safely as possible.'

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists
Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

North Wales Chronicle

time6 days ago

  • Health
  • North Wales Chronicle

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

Sudden cardiac death is a 'leading cause of mortality' in athletes, experts said as they set out to investigate whether endurance athletes had heart scarring and linked heart rhythm problems. Academics studied 106 former competitive cyclists and triathletes who exercise for more than 10 hours a week for at least 15 years. Experts from the University of Leeds scanned their hearts and had an implantable loop recorder fitted to assess their heart rhythms. They found that 50 of the 106 athletes (47%) had scarring on their hearts, particularly in the left ventricle – the main pumping chamber of the heart. This compares to 11% of 27 non endurance athletes studied for comparison. During a two-year follow up period they found that 22% of the athletes had an abnormal heart rhythm, according to the study which was funded by the the British Heart Foundation and published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging. They concluded that the athletes who had heart scarring were over 4.5 times more likely to experience an abnormal heart rhythm episode – which is linked with an increased risk of sudden cardiac arrest – compared to those without scarring. It is thought that among endurance athletes scarring could be caused by levels of exercise when the heart has to work even harder to pump blood. Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, clinical director at the British Heart Foundation and consultant cardiologist, said: 'There's no doubt that exercise is good for our hearts – it helps to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol, manage our weight, and it boosts our mental health. 'But in some veteran male athletes, this early research suggests that intense exercise over many years may have affected their heart health. 'More research in veteran endurance athletes – both in men and women – will be needed to identify the small number of people who have the kind of heart scarring, together with other risk factors, that mean their life could be saved by having an implantable defibrillator.' One of the athletes who took part in the trial was Brian Cookson, keen cyclist and former president of British Cycling and Union Cycliste Internationale – cycling's world governing body. The 74-year-old grandfather from Whalley, Lancashire, said the trial could have saved his life. While training at the Manchester Velodrome he started feeling unwell and his sports watch recorded his heart rate had reached 238 beats per minute (bpm), and stayed that way for around 15 minutes. 'I was pushing it a little bit on the track, but not absolutely full gas, as we say in cycling,' Mr Cookson said. He contacted the team involved with the study who reviewed data from his implanted device to record his heart rhythm. They were able to see he had suffered an episode of ventricular tachycardia – an abnormally fast heartbeat where the heart's ventricles contract too quickly and do not pump blood around the body effectively. 'The next day, I got a call. They said, 'Stop riding your bike, don't do anything more strenuous than walking until we can get you in here because we think you need an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)',' he said. He was fitted with one of the devices in August last year which shocks the heart if it goes into an abnormal rhythm. Mr Cookson, who is still cycling, said: 'I keep a closer eye on my heart rate now and if I'm getting to 150bpm I'll start backing off. 'I'm so grateful to have been part of this study. It might well have saved my life. 'Without it, I might have carried on pushing myself until something more serious happened.' Dr Peter Swoboda, associate professor in cardiology and consultant cardiologist at the University of Leeds, who led the study, said: 'In our study, the athletes who experienced dangerous heart rhythms often had symptoms first. 'I'd encourage anyone who experiences blackouts, dizziness, chest pain or breathlessness, whether during sport or at rest, to speak to their doctor and get it checked out. 'These results shouldn't put people off regular exercise. 'Our study focused on a very select group, and not all the athletes involved were found to have scarring in their hearts. We can all benefit from being more active, and this study is an important step towards helping people take part in sport as safely as possible.'

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists
Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

Rhyl Journal

time6 days ago

  • Health
  • Rhyl Journal

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

Sudden cardiac death is a 'leading cause of mortality' in athletes, experts said as they set out to investigate whether endurance athletes had heart scarring and linked heart rhythm problems. Academics studied 106 former competitive cyclists and triathletes who exercise for more than 10 hours a week for at least 15 years. Experts from the University of Leeds scanned their hearts and had an implantable loop recorder fitted to assess their heart rhythms. They found that 50 of the 106 athletes (47%) had scarring on their hearts, particularly in the left ventricle – the main pumping chamber of the heart. This compares to 11% of 27 non endurance athletes studied for comparison. During a two-year follow up period they found that 22% of the athletes had an abnormal heart rhythm, according to the study which was funded by the the British Heart Foundation and published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging. They concluded that the athletes who had heart scarring were over 4.5 times more likely to experience an abnormal heart rhythm episode – which is linked with an increased risk of sudden cardiac arrest – compared to those without scarring. It is thought that among endurance athletes scarring could be caused by levels of exercise when the heart has to work even harder to pump blood. Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, clinical director at the British Heart Foundation and consultant cardiologist, said: 'There's no doubt that exercise is good for our hearts – it helps to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol, manage our weight, and it boosts our mental health. 'But in some veteran male athletes, this early research suggests that intense exercise over many years may have affected their heart health. 'More research in veteran endurance athletes – both in men and women – will be needed to identify the small number of people who have the kind of heart scarring, together with other risk factors, that mean their life could be saved by having an implantable defibrillator.' One of the athletes who took part in the trial was Brian Cookson, keen cyclist and former president of British Cycling and Union Cycliste Internationale – cycling's world governing body. The 74-year-old grandfather from Whalley, Lancashire, said the trial could have saved his life. While training at the Manchester Velodrome he started feeling unwell and his sports watch recorded his heart rate had reached 238 beats per minute (bpm), and stayed that way for around 15 minutes. 'I was pushing it a little bit on the track, but not absolutely full gas, as we say in cycling,' Mr Cookson said. He contacted the team involved with the study who reviewed data from his implanted device to record his heart rhythm. They were able to see he had suffered an episode of ventricular tachycardia – an abnormally fast heartbeat where the heart's ventricles contract too quickly and do not pump blood around the body effectively. 'The next day, I got a call. They said, 'Stop riding your bike, don't do anything more strenuous than walking until we can get you in here because we think you need an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)',' he said. He was fitted with one of the devices in August last year which shocks the heart if it goes into an abnormal rhythm. Mr Cookson, who is still cycling, said: 'I keep a closer eye on my heart rate now and if I'm getting to 150bpm I'll start backing off. 'I'm so grateful to have been part of this study. It might well have saved my life. 'Without it, I might have carried on pushing myself until something more serious happened.' Dr Peter Swoboda, associate professor in cardiology and consultant cardiologist at the University of Leeds, who led the study, said: 'In our study, the athletes who experienced dangerous heart rhythms often had symptoms first. 'I'd encourage anyone who experiences blackouts, dizziness, chest pain or breathlessness, whether during sport or at rest, to speak to their doctor and get it checked out. 'These results shouldn't put people off regular exercise. 'Our study focused on a very select group, and not all the athletes involved were found to have scarring in their hearts. We can all benefit from being more active, and this study is an important step towards helping people take part in sport as safely as possible.'

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists
Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

Leader Live

time6 days ago

  • Health
  • Leader Live

Heart issues among endurance athletes studied by scientists

Sudden cardiac death is a 'leading cause of mortality' in athletes, experts said as they set out to investigate whether endurance athletes had heart scarring and linked heart rhythm problems. Academics studied 106 former competitive cyclists and triathletes who exercise for more than 10 hours a week for at least 15 years. Experts from the University of Leeds scanned their hearts and had an implantable loop recorder fitted to assess their heart rhythms. They found that 50 of the 106 athletes (47%) had scarring on their hearts, particularly in the left ventricle – the main pumping chamber of the heart. This compares to 11% of 27 non endurance athletes studied for comparison. During a two-year follow up period they found that 22% of the athletes had an abnormal heart rhythm, according to the study which was funded by the the British Heart Foundation and published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging. They concluded that the athletes who had heart scarring were over 4.5 times more likely to experience an abnormal heart rhythm episode – which is linked with an increased risk of sudden cardiac arrest – compared to those without scarring. It is thought that among endurance athletes scarring could be caused by levels of exercise when the heart has to work even harder to pump blood. Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, clinical director at the British Heart Foundation and consultant cardiologist, said: 'There's no doubt that exercise is good for our hearts – it helps to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol, manage our weight, and it boosts our mental health. 'But in some veteran male athletes, this early research suggests that intense exercise over many years may have affected their heart health. 'More research in veteran endurance athletes – both in men and women – will be needed to identify the small number of people who have the kind of heart scarring, together with other risk factors, that mean their life could be saved by having an implantable defibrillator.' One of the athletes who took part in the trial was Brian Cookson, keen cyclist and former president of British Cycling and Union Cycliste Internationale – cycling's world governing body. The 74-year-old grandfather from Whalley, Lancashire, said the trial could have saved his life. While training at the Manchester Velodrome he started feeling unwell and his sports watch recorded his heart rate had reached 238 beats per minute (bpm), and stayed that way for around 15 minutes. 'I was pushing it a little bit on the track, but not absolutely full gas, as we say in cycling,' Mr Cookson said. He contacted the team involved with the study who reviewed data from his implanted device to record his heart rhythm. They were able to see he had suffered an episode of ventricular tachycardia – an abnormally fast heartbeat where the heart's ventricles contract too quickly and do not pump blood around the body effectively. 'The next day, I got a call. They said, 'Stop riding your bike, don't do anything more strenuous than walking until we can get you in here because we think you need an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)',' he said. He was fitted with one of the devices in August last year which shocks the heart if it goes into an abnormal rhythm. Mr Cookson, who is still cycling, said: 'I keep a closer eye on my heart rate now and if I'm getting to 150bpm I'll start backing off. 'I'm so grateful to have been part of this study. It might well have saved my life. 'Without it, I might have carried on pushing myself until something more serious happened.' Dr Peter Swoboda, associate professor in cardiology and consultant cardiologist at the University of Leeds, who led the study, said: 'In our study, the athletes who experienced dangerous heart rhythms often had symptoms first. 'I'd encourage anyone who experiences blackouts, dizziness, chest pain or breathlessness, whether during sport or at rest, to speak to their doctor and get it checked out. 'These results shouldn't put people off regular exercise. 'Our study focused on a very select group, and not all the athletes involved were found to have scarring in their hearts. We can all benefit from being more active, and this study is an important step towards helping people take part in sport as safely as possible.'

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