Atrial fibrillation and philosophy…

Patterns. As a doctor, you learn to see patterns. Biologists call the patterns of organisms phenotype–as opposed to genotype, the genetic makeup. For twenty years, I have observed phenotypes (patterns) of people afflicted with AF, and have come to believe, and data are beginning to confirm, that the disease doesn’t just happen. It’s not a fluke. AF happens to people because of something about them. I’m not talking about the obvious AF associations, such as obesity, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and structural heart problems (heart failure and valve disease, etc). These are all diseases that disrupt the atria muscle and its electrical function–by excess stretch, scar and fatty infiltration. These are easy concepts to understand; they are biologic effects. What’s more interesting, yet no less consistently observed, is the typical persona of the patient with AF. That’s not a typo; I meant to say persona. Oodles of science has shown the heart and mind are connected, so what I refer to here is the character of one’s subconscious, their psyche. their spiritual and emotional, rather than biologic heart. At various times, I’ve dubbed AF, the A-student disease, or the over-achievers disease, or even this…the frowny-faced-person disease. I see CEOs, lawyers, doctors, engineers, ministers, and yes, let’s put masters-aged athletes in this category as well. These are all people whose material gifts and accomplishments s...
Source: Dr John M - Category: Cardiology Authors: Source Type: blogs