Do young people get atrial fibrillation?

I often have palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, and feel like I'm about to faint. Are these symptoms of atrial fibrillation? Does this disease occur in young people? (Huy, 35 years old, Ho Chi Minh City)

Reply

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common heart rhythm disorder, characterized by an irregular, chaotic heartbeat even at rest. Symptoms of AF can appear intermittently or continuously. If not well controlled, the disease can cause complications such as blood clots, heart failure, stroke, and myocardial infarction.

Atrial fibrillation is common in patients over 60 years old. The cause of the disease is due to abnormalities in the heart, the result of a number of other diseases such as high blood pressure, cardiomyopathy, heart valve disease, hyperthyroidism, sleep apnea... In which, age is a factor that increases the risk of the disease, the elderly are susceptible to atrial fibrillation.

Young people get their heart health checked at Tam Anh Hospital. Photo: Anh Minh — Young people get their heart health checked at Tam Anh Hospital. Photo: *Anh Minh*

However, what is worrying is that atrial fibrillation is becoming increasingly younger. For young people without structural heart disease, the common risk factor for atrial fibrillation is thyroid disease such as hyperthyroidism. Other factors include high blood pressure, unhealthy lifestyles such as alcohol or caffeine abuse, obesity, smoking, excessive stress, etc.

The initial symptoms of atrial fibrillation are not obvious. Therefore, patients are often subjective, especially young people, do not regularly have periodic health check-ups, causing the disease to progress severely, potentially leading to dangerous complications, threatening life.

Young people should proactively reduce the risk of atrial fibrillation by avoiding being overweight or obese; exercising regularly; eating a heart-healthy diet; controlling blood sugar; and managing blood pressure and cholesterol levels. In addition, each person should limit the use of alcohol, beer or stimulants; not smoke; reduce stress; and get enough sleep every day.

If you have risk factors for atrial fibrillation, you should have regular health check-ups for early detection and timely treatment. Depending on the level of atrial fibrillation, the patient's general condition, age, and underlying medical conditions, the doctor will prescribe a treatment regimen with medication, surgical intervention, or other procedures. In addition, you should adjust your lifestyle to help the treatment process be more effective.

Dr. Tran Vu Minh Thu
Head of Cardiology Department 2, Cardiovascular Center, Tam Anh Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City

At 2:00 p.m. on October 28, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, organized a free consultation program on atrial fibrillation and arrhythmia at Tam Anh Research Institute (2B Pho Quang, Ward 2, Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City).

Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Nguyen Vinh and Dr. Tran Vu Minh Thu directly consulted and answered questions during the program. Participants had the chance to draw lucky numbers to receive a screening package for atrial fibrillation, a general cardiovascular examination worth nearly 4 million VND per package and many other gifts. Readers can register to attend here.

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