Winter flu outbreaks can mask serious heart diseases since patients tend to blame lingering symptoms on the virus and overlook it as flu, doctors warn.

According to Cardiomyopathy UK, 95% of individuals were reported to be unaware that being unable to ward off flu symptoms could indicate heart conditions. Flu Symptoms such as persistent fever, aches, breathlessness, chest pain, palpitations, and dizziness could indicate fatal heart conditions like myocarditis and Cardiomyopathy.

The research also stated the following:

  • 42% of individuals with persistent flu symptoms who didn’t visit their General Practice (GP) said they had assumed the symptoms to wade off by themselves.
  • 27% of them said they felt guilty for wasting their physician’s time.
  • Cardiomyopathy affects about one in every 300 individuals and is the leading cause of cardiac death in young people.
  • 60% of sufferers weren’t initially diagnosed with the condition.
  • 17% of them have been waiting for more than a year to get the correct diagnosis.

The chief executive of Cardiomyopathy UK Joel Rose warned that, during the winter flu season, it is important that everyone is aware of the signs and symptoms of heart conditions including myocarditis and cardiomyopathy. “With cases of flu and the common cold rife, people must listen to their body. If concerned, they should visit, or revisit, the GP as soon as possible” he said.

And the president of the Primary Care Cardiovascular Society, Dr. Jim Moore said that there is a degree of crossover between cardiac conditions and flu-like symptoms such as chest pain, breathlessness, palpitations or dizziness. While it is common for such symptoms to linger during the winter season, he warned, if anybody is experiencing persistent symptoms, they should be aware of the potential underlying cardiac causes.

“Flu season is undeniably a busy time for those of us in primary healthcare but, if concerned, no one should ever feel guilty about seeking further advice,” he said.

Cardiomyopathy is a wide term that includes diseases of the heart muscle and includes the following types:

*Dilated Cardiomyopathy- where the heart muscle walls get stretched and thin, and cannot contract properly to pump out blood throughout the body.

*Restrictive Cardiomyopathy- where the walls of the heart chambers get stiffened and rigid and cannot fill up the heart with blood properly.

*Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy- where the chambers of the heart get reduced in size so they cannot hold much blood.

*Arrhythmogenic right ventricular Cardiomyopathy- when the proteins that normally hold the heart muscles together get abnormal.

Flu jab 2019 do you need a flu jab
Flu jab 2019 do you need a flu jab Mojpe - Pixabay
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