原來“心碎”是真實存在的！心碎綜合徵是什麼病？

當一個人感到傷心時，通常會說“我的心都碎了”。

雖然這只是一種比喻，人的心臟並不會因為悲傷的情緒碎裂成片，但是卻可能出現“心碎綜合徵”。

心碎綜合徵也叫takotsubo心肌病，最開始於1990年在日本被發現，可以導致快速逆向心肌無力。

Broken heart syndrome is a condition that can cause rapid and reversive heart muscle weakness, also known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy. It was first identified in 1990 in Japan.

“takotsubo”一詞來自於日本一種捕章魚的罐子，瓶頸窄，底座寬，有心碎綜合徵的人左心室會腫脹起來，看起來和這種罐子的形狀一樣。

It is named for an octopus trap used for centuries in Japan, with a narrow neck and a relatively wide base that makes it easy for octopuses to enter but not leave.

Patients with the disease have an unusual swelling in the heart's left ventricle, giving the heart a similar appearance to the trap.

圖源：Heart Foundation

什麼會導致“心碎”

情緒或身體上的壓力經常導致心碎綜合徵。但是，雖然大多數患有此綜合徵的人會承受某種壓力，高達30%的患者在初始階段沒有可識別的觸發因素。

Two kinds of stress — emotional or physical — often cause broken heart syndrome. But while most people with this condition experience a stressful event, up to 30 percent of patients have no identifiable trigger at the time of their initial symptoms.

情緒上的壓力包括悲痛（grief），恐懼（fear），暴怒（extremely anger）以及驚喜（surprise）。PS：你以為的驚喜對別人來說可能是驚嚇！

身體上的壓力來自於發高燒（high fever），中風（stroke），癲癇發作（seizure），呼吸困難（difficulty in breathing），嚴重出血（significant bleeding）以及低血糖（low blood sugar）。

心碎綜合徵的症狀和心臟病的症狀很相似，比如胸痛、呼吸困難、暈眩等。這些症狀可能在情緒或身體壓力事件發生後幾分鐘或幾小時內。

什麼人容易“心碎”

據估算，英國每年有2500人患上心碎綜合徵，這種綜合徵還可能引發與心臟病併發症類似的病症。

Affecting an estimated 2,500 people in the UK each year, the syndrome also carries a risk of complications similar to that of an actual heart attack.

有人可能覺得自己每天壓力都很大，是不是有可能已經得了心碎綜合徵卻不自知？其實不然，這種綜合徵來得快去得也快，如果你的症狀是長期的，“心碎”的機率還是很小的。

Broken heart syndrome appears to be a condition that comes on suddenly and resolves quickly. If you are a person who frequently has symptoms of chest pain or shortness of breath when under significant stress, you should be evaluated by your doctor. If your symptoms are chronic, it is unlikely that you have broken heart syndrome.

一項新的研究表明，中年和老年女性被診斷患有心碎綜合徵的頻率比年輕女性或任何年齡的男性要高10倍。

Middle-aged and older women are being diagnosed with broken heart syndrome more frequently – up to 10 times more often – than younger women or men of any age, a new study suggests.

The research also suggests that the rare condition has become more common, and the incidence has been rising steadily since well before the COVID-19 pandemic.

研究還表明，這種罕見的疾病已經變得更普遍了，而且新冠疫情大暴發之前，發病率一直在穩步上升。

心碎綜合徵可能危及生命。在某些情況下，它可能導致嚴重的心肌無力從而導致充血性心力衰竭、低血壓、休克等。