Written By: Prerna Mittra | Updated : May 15, 2025 5:13 PM IST
Are Men More Likely To Suffer And Die From Broken Heart Syndrome Than Women? (Photo: Pixabay)
Men's mental, physical and emotional health: According to the findings of a recent study, men are more likely to experience extreme emotions, as compared to women, which can make them susceptible to heart problems. The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association (JAHA) on May 14. It noted that men are twice as vulnerable to die from what is known as 'broken heart syndrome' than women. Also known as 'takotsubo cardiomyopathy' or 'stress cardiomyopathy', broken heart syndrome is a condition that weakens the heart muscles -- it is often a result of extreme emotional and physical stress that people experience. Doctors warn that it is similar to the symptoms of a heart attack, meaning it can also cause shortness of breath, chest pain, irregular heartbeat, dizziness, and other such heart-related issues.
Keep in mind that when the heart muscles get weak, they can pump blood less efficiently. Broken heart syndrome usually happens when one suddenly loses a loved one, or undergoes divorce proceedings, and experiences sudden physical and emotional stress. While scientists are not sure as to what causes the condition, they believe it could be because of a sudden increase in stress hormones in the body, which can cause all of these heart attack-like symptoms. It can make one feel their heart is being squeezed from the inside. According to the JAHA study, the mortality rate of men who get broken heart syndrome is as high as 11.2 per cent; in women, it is 5.5 per cent.
But, broken heart syndrome (BHS) is not to be taken lightly, because people -- mostly men -- may actually succumb to it. Per the JAHA study, 6.6 per cent of people with broken heart syndrome died of 'cardiogenic shock' that happens when the heart is not able to pump enough blood and send it to the rest of the body.
While 35.9 per cent of individuals with the condition died of congestive heart failure, 20.7 per cent died from atrial fibrillation, 5.3 per cent from a stroke, and 3.4 per cent died of cardiac arrest, the study mentioned.
For the study, data of as many as 2,00,000 people over the age of 18 in the US were analysed. They were found to have been hospitalised with takotsubo cardiomyopathy, from the year 2016 to 2020. Interestingly, researchers found that while men were more at risk of death due to broken heart syndrome, it appeared to affect more women. As such, about 83 per cent of the patients hospitalised were women.
