Some 1 million patients in the U.S. live with a type of heart disease called heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, or HFpEF, caused by a stiffening of a chamber of the heart that makes it much more challenging to distribute blood throughout the body. The condition has few approved therapies and high mortality rates.
Public health consultant Dr Ross Keat said supporting people earlier to make small preventative changes would make "a big difference later on". Some 3,500 people in the north of the island within that age bracket are eligible for the checks. The checks will be carried out by two pre-existing nurses that support GP staff and would not replace GP appointments, Keat explained, adding that the cost would be minimal and absorbed by Ramsey Group Practice.
He has been living with atrial fibrillation (AF), a common heart rhythm problem, affecting 1.4m people in the UK, that can cause your heart to beat irregularly and often too fast. "It's very debilitating. On my worst day I feel very tired, my heart rate increases rapidly - I could walk for 2 or 3 miles and be okay, I could walk for 100 yards and it would hit me."