Who Is At Risk for Heart Block?
The risk factors for congenital and acquired heart
block are different.
Congenital Heart Block
If a pregnant woman has an autoimmune disease, such
as lupus, her fetus is at risk for heart block.
Autoimmune diseases can cause the body to make
proteins called antibodies that can cross the placenta. (The placenta is the
organ that attaches the umbilical cord to the mother's womb.) These antibodies
may damage the baby's heart and lead to congenital heart block.
Congenital
heart defects (problems with the heart's structure) also may result in
congenital heart block. Most of the time, doctors don't know what causes these
defects.
Heredity may play a role in certain heart defects.
For example, a parent who has a congenital heart defect may be more likely than
other people to have a child with the condition.
Acquired Heart Block
Acquired heart block can occur in people of any age.
However, most types of the disorder are more common in older people. This is
because many of the risk factors are more common in older people.
People who have a history of
heart disease or
heart
attacks are more likely to have heart block. Examples of heart disease that
can lead to heart block include
heart
failure,
coronary
artery disease, and
cardiomyopathy.
Other diseases also may raise the risk for heart
block. These include
sarcoidosis
and the degenerative muscle disorders, Lev's disease and Lenegre's disease.
Exposure to toxic substances or taking certain
medicines, such as digitalis, can raise your risk for heart block.
Well-trained athletes and young people are at higher
risk for first-degree heart block caused by an overly active vagus nerve.
Activity in this nerve slows the heart rate. |