The long-term effects of an untreatable condition, often confused with a heart attack, will be explored by University of Aberdeen researchers after they were awarded a prestigious grant.

Acute stress-induced (Tako-tsubo) cardiomyopathy, sometimes called ‘broken heart syndrome’, is a condition triggered by stress and often follows an episode of major stress such as bereavements, involvement in an accident, or divorce – giving rise to its alternative name.

Sufferers experience heart attack-like symptoms but investigations reveal that while the heart muscle is weakened, there is no blockage in the coronary arteries.

Originally it was thought the condition only lasted a day or so, but a previous University of Aberdeen study showed sufferers still felt the effects up to four months later.

The latest study, led by Dr Dana Dawson, will investigate previous sufferers of the disease to explore the longer term impact of the little understood condition.

Dr Dawson, a Senior Lecturer in Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Aberdeen and Consultant Cardiologist at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, said, ‘While the condition was originally thought to be self-limiting, we were surprised to see that, later, patients still lack energy, or are unable to return to work.

‘There are also reports from other groups that these after-effects continue to linger with sufferers – albeit in a non-specific way. It’s difficult to say definitively with the current knowledge what is wrong with them.

‘At the moment, we believe the condition is underdiagnosed because many front door physicians don’t consider it as a possibility. Certainly we feel the number of cases diagnosed is far smaller than the real amount of sufferers.’

Every year the British Medical Association (BMA) awards research grants in ten different fields, (cardiovascular, neurology, surgery, infectious diseases, etc). This year Dr Dawson received the Josephine Lansdell grant for heart disease to continue her team’s work into the condition.

Dr Dawson’s team will implement a number of in-depth tests in order to fully understand the extent of the long term effects of the condition.