导致心破碎的不仅仅是悲伤

Takotsubo syndrome gets its name from the Japanese octopus trap, which is the shape the heart resembles when it balloons out at the bottom. (Photo: Piotr Krzeslak/Shutterstock)

Takotsubo syndrome, or broken-heart syndrome, is a rare condition characterized by a weakening of the heart muscles. It can cause chest pains and loss of breath. The condition can even be fatal for those who develop cardiogenic shock, when the heart can't pump enough blood to the body as a result. For those who survive but have cardiogenic shock, they can still die from complications of broken-heart syndrome years later.

Takotsubo综合征，或心碎综合症，是一种罕见的症状，其特征是心肌功能减弱。它会引起胸痛和呼吸困难。这种情况甚至对那些发生心源性休克的人是致命的，因为心脏无法向身体输送足够的血液。对于那些幸存下来但患有心源性休克的人来说，他们仍然可能在数年后死于心碎综合症的并发症。

While broken-heart syndrome has been linked to a stressful event in a person's life, research shows that happy occasions may be linked to the syndrome as well.

尽管心碎综合症与人们生活中的压力事件有关，但研究表明，快乐的场合也可能与该综合症有关。

Broken-heart syndrome causes the heart's left ventricle to swell at the bottom while remaining narrow at the top, making it look similar to an octopus trap, hence the Japanese name "takotsubo," which means octopus pot.

心碎综合症导致心脏左心室底部膨胀，而顶部保持狭窄，使其看起来像一个章鱼陷阱，因此日本人将其命名为“takotsubo”，意思是章鱼锅。

Research on the condition, which was published in the European Heart Journal, looked at data from 1,750 patients who had been diagnosed with broken-heart syndrome worldwide. Using information from the International Takotsubo Registry, a database housed at the University Hospital Zurich in Switzerland, researchers noted that 485 patients developed the condition following a definitive emotional trigger.

发表在《欧洲心脏杂志》上的关于这种情况的研究，研究了全世界1750名被诊断出心碎综合症的患者的数据。研究人员利用瑞士苏黎世大学医院的数据库——国际Takotsubo登记处的信息指出，485名患者在明确的情绪触发后出现了这种情况。

Of the patients who developed the condition after a trigger, the overwhelming majority — 96% — had experienced a sad or traumatic event such as the death of a family member, a recent divorce, an accident, illness or a relationship problem. But the remaining 4% developed broken-heart syndrome after a happy or joyful event, such as a birthday party, wedding or even a favorite team winning a big game.

在发病后出现这种情况的患者中，绝大多数(96%)经历过悲伤或创伤性事件，如家庭成员死亡、最近离婚、事故、疾病或感情问题。而剩下的4%的人则在经历了诸如生日派对、婚礼、甚至是最喜欢的球队赢得一场大赛等快乐的活动后，患上了心碎综合症。

The majority of broken-heart syndrome patients, whether the condition was triggered by a happy or sad event, were post-menopausal women, leading researchers to believe that irregular surges of hormones may contribute to the condition.

大多数心碎综合症患者，无论这种情况是由快乐还是悲伤引发的，都是绝经后的女性，这使得研究人员相信激素的不规则激增可能是导致这种情况的原因。

This study is helping researchers get a better look at the intertwined feedback mechanisms within the body. Researchers hope to study the brain wave patterns of patients who experience "happy-heart syndrome," and compare them to those experiencing the "broken-heart" variety so they can better understand the interactions of the brain and the heart and how emotions are processed within the body.

这项研究帮助研究人员更好地了解身体内部相互交织的反馈机制。研究人员希望研究“开心综合症”患者的脑电波模式，并将其与“心碎综合症”患者进行比较，以便更好地理解大脑与心脏的相互作用，以及情绪在体内是如何处理的。