WebMD: Does Sex Really Trigger Cardiac Arrest?

Does Sex Really Trigger Cardiac Arrest?By Dennis ThompsonHealthDay ReporterSUNDAY, Nov. 12, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- It ' s a common Hollywood trope -- an older guy is having enthusiastic sex with a gal half his age when he suddenly flops over dead.But in real life, sexual activity very rarely causes cardiac arrest, a new study reassuringly reports.Sex was linked to only 34 out of more than 4,500 cardiac arrests that occurred in the Portland, Ore., metropolitan area between 2002 and 2015. That ' s a rate of just 0.7 percent, the researchers noted.Of those cases, 18 occurred during sex and 15 immediately after sex. Time couldn ' t be determined for the last case." I ' m a little surprised at the really tiny number, " said study senior researcher Dr. Sumeet Chugh, medical director of the Heart Rhythm Center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. " But mostly I feel it ' s reassuring data. "The news is most welcome for patients with heart problems who aren ' t sure if sex could be dangerous, Chugh said." Previously we would say the risk is probably low, but we don ' t know how low, " Chugh noted. " Now we have data and we can say to them the risk is very low. "The new findings are part of a 16-year study of heart risk factors involving about a million people living in and around Portland." Sexual activity is just one variable in the whole big picture " of cardiac risks, but one that hasn ' t been studied in depth, Chugh added.Men are more likely than ...

Source: Dr Portnay - November 13, 2017 Category: Cardiology Authors: Dr Portnay Source Type: blogs