HEART PROBLEMS WON'T SLOW OLAJUWON, DOCTORS HOPE.Byline: Ruth SoRelle Houston Chronicle Atrial fibrillation atrial fibrillation Irregular rhythm (arrhythmia) of contraction of the atria (upper heart chambers). The most common major arrhythmia, it may result as a consequence of increased fibrous tissue in the aging heart, of heart disease, or in association with severe infection. - the condition that took Hakeem Olajuwon Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (born Akeem Abdul Olajuwon on January 21, 1963) is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). out of the Houston Rockets' game Tuesday night - is an abnormal rhythm in the upper chamber of the heart. This is the second time the star athlete has been sidelined with the problem. He was first hospitalized for atrial fibrillation in 1991. Doctors never identified a cause for the first episode. Doctors released Olajuwon from Methodist Hospital Methodist Hospital is the name of numerous medical institutions.
In most cases, the cause is never identified, said Dr. Robert Roberts, chief of cardiology at Methodist Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine Baylor College of Medicine is a private medical school located in Houston, Texas, USA on the grounds of the Texas Medical Center. It has been consistently rated the top medical school in Texas and among the best in the United States. . Roberts, an expert in atrial fibrillation, is not Olajuwon's physician. However, he said he does not expect that the heart problem will affect the basketball star's career. ``It could be years or months before he gets it again,'' Roberts said. Doctors tried medication when Olajuwon went to the hospital Tuesday night, but it did not control the abnormal heart rhythm. Doctors had to ``shock'' or defibrillate de·fib·ril·late tr.v. de·fib·ril·lat·ed, de·fib·ril·lat·ing, de·fib·ril·lates To stop the fibrillation of (a heart) and restore normal contractions through the use of drugs or an electric shock. his heart to change the rhythm to normal. ``It was important to defibrillate him,'' Roberts said. ``If it continued for days, he could develop a clot that would cause a stroke.'' Atrial fibrillation, a condition in which the heart nearly quivers with an irregular rhythm as fast as 400 beats per minute beats per minute Cardiac pacing The unit of measure for the frequency of heart depolarizations or contractions each minute–or pulse rate , affects nearly 2 million Americans. The normal adult heart beats an average of 60 times each minute. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Houston center Hakeem Olajuwon was released from a hospital Thursday after complaining of chest pains. Associated Press |
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