US Vice President Dick Cheney was to undergo evaluation and possible
treatment after his doctors found an irregular heartbeat during a
medical examination on Monday, a Cheney spokeswoman said.
Cheney visited his doctors because of a lingering cough from a cold
and during the examination he was found to have an irregular heartbeat,
which on further testing was determined to be "atrial fibrillation, an
abnormal rhythm involving the upper chambers of the heart," said Megan
Mitchell, spokeswoman for Cheney.
Cheney will undergo further evaluation on Monday and if required he
will have an electric impulse to the heart delivered, which is standard
treatment for this diagnosis, Mitchell said. He would be put under
sedation.
It would be an outpatient procedure and Cheney was expected to
return home on Monday night, she said. It had not yet been determined
whether he would require the procedure, she said.
Atrial fibrillation is a heart rhythm disorder that is becoming
increasingly common. The heart's two small upper chambers quiver
instead of beating effectively and blood isn't pumped completely out,
so it may pool and clot, putting the person at risk of stroke.(reuters)
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