You can die from 'broken heart syndrome', but scientists may have found a cure

Scientists may have discovered the first treatments for a broken heart.

Patients with “broken heart syndrome”, which often leads to an early death in those bereaved, were put on a three-month exercise programme including cycling, running and swimming. It is the first ever trial into the “devastating” condition where the heart muscle changes shape and suddenly weakens, usually in response to the death of a close loved one.

An exercise programme or counselling sessions, lasting three months, were both shown to improve heart function and experts say they could be offered on the NHS. The condition, officially known as Takotsubo syndrome, causes symptoms similar to a heart attack.

READ MORE: Vaccine against shingles could slash heart attack risk by a fifth, study shows

Around 5,000 Brits are diagnosed with it every year and have twice the risk of death compared to the general population.

Study author Dr David Gamble, of Aberdeen University of Aberdeen, who presented the findings at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Madrid, said: “In Takotsubo syndrome, there are serious effects on the heart, which may not return to normal. We know that patients can be affected for the rest of their lives and that their long-term heart health is similar to people who have survived a heart attack.

“These results further highlight the importance of ‘the brain-heart axis’. It shows that cognitive behavioural therapy or exercise could help patients along the road to recovery.”

Many people die soon after a spouse has passed away but rarely receive an official diagnosis of Takotsubo syndrome. Pop star Sinead O’Connor was said to have died from a “broken heart” in 2023 after her beloved 17-year-old son Shane died by suicide.

Her ex-partner Dermot Hayes, who dated singer Sinead for two years, said: “From this you can surmise that a broken heart is a real illness symptom, and a cause of death… It was more to do with a broken heart than anything else.” The 56-year-old was not diagnosed with Takotsubo syndrome and officials said she died of natural causes.

The world-first trial enrolled 76 patients who had been diagnosed with the syndrome. Nine out of 10 were women and the average age was 66. Patients were randomly assigned to receive cognitive behavioural therapy, the exercise programme or standard care.

The exercise group went through a 12-week exercise course which included cycling machines, treadmills, aerobics and swimming, gradually increasing in number of sessions and intensity each week. The cognitive behavioural therapy group had 12 one-to-one weekly sessions.

READ MORE: Opticians 'could predict heart attacks and strokes' during routine eye scans

READ MORE: Cannabis users at twice the risk of dying from heart attack or stoke, study finds

People who took part in the exercise programme were able to walk an average of 528 metres in six minutes by the end of the study, compared to 457 metres at the start. The average in the cognitive therapy group increased from 402 metres to 458 metres.

There was also an increase in patient’s VO2 max - their body’s maximum oxygen consumption at peak exercise - of 15% in the counselling group and 18% in the exercise group. In contrast, there was little change in both measures in the patient group that only received standard care.

Researchers tested the heart’s metabolism using a sophisticated imaging technique called 31P-Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy, which allowed them to study how patients’ hearts were producing, storing and using energy. Researchers at Aberdeen University have previously shown that patients with Takotsubo syndrome suffer impaired heart metabolism long term.

After 12 weeks of cognitive behavioural therapy or exercise, there was an increase in the amount of fuel available to patients’ hearts to allow them to pump, which was not seen in people who had usual care

Researchers will now test whether the treatments improve patients’ health, and reduce their risk of dying over a longer period. They hope that either programme could be recommended on the NHS.

Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, director at the British Heart Foundation, which funded the study, said: “Takotsubo syndrome can be a devastating condition that can affect you at a really vulnerable time if triggered by a major life event.

“It is intriguing that this study also showed that cognitive behavioural therapy improved heart function and patients’ fitness. More research is needed to find out whether these approaches improve survival or symptoms over the long term.”