Andrew
08-15-2007, 05:05 PM
Modern roller coasters could be bad for heart, study says (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/15/MN4RRIFAI.DTL&feed=rss.news) -- SFGate/LATimes, 2007-08-15
A new generation of faster, twistier roller coasters can make the heart race up to 155 beats per minute and spur dangerous changes to heart rhythm in some people, according to a study released Tuesday.
One volunteer in the study, which took place on the Holiday Park Expedition GeForce roller coaster in Germany, experienced an episode of atrial fibrillation, and another experienced ventricular tachycardia - both problematic changes in heart rhythm. The two volunteers recovered on their own after a few seconds.
The changes could have been fatal if the participants had underlying cardiac conditions or if the irregularities had lasted longer, said study coauthor Dariusch Haghi, a cardiologist at University Hospital of Mannheim in Germany. "I don't think healthy people should be worried at all," said Haghi, whose study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. "If people have a serious heart condition or if they are unaware of their heart condition, this might be worrisome."
A new generation of faster, twistier roller coasters can make the heart race up to 155 beats per minute and spur dangerous changes to heart rhythm in some people, according to a study released Tuesday.
One volunteer in the study, which took place on the Holiday Park Expedition GeForce roller coaster in Germany, experienced an episode of atrial fibrillation, and another experienced ventricular tachycardia - both problematic changes in heart rhythm. The two volunteers recovered on their own after a few seconds.
The changes could have been fatal if the participants had underlying cardiac conditions or if the irregularities had lasted longer, said study coauthor Dariusch Haghi, a cardiologist at University Hospital of Mannheim in Germany. "I don't think healthy people should be worried at all," said Haghi, whose study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. "If people have a serious heart condition or if they are unaware of their heart condition, this might be worrisome."