Sarah’s Life with Arrhythmia

Teenager Sarah McClay has lived with a heart arrhythmia almost all her life. She suffers from Reflex anoxic Seizure, a condition where any sudden shock or pain can cause her heart and breathing to stop in a kind of mini-cardiac arrest. The sufferer also has seizure like symptoms during an attack, and they fall unconscious.

Sarah’s first attack happened when she was just two years old, after a fall at nursery school. It was put down to shock, but then a few weeks later, she suffered another episode after she sat down onto a submerged toy in the bathtub. Their GP diagnosed Reflex Anoxic Seizure, but it was only the beginning of their problems.

By the time she stared primary school, Sarah was having attacks about every two months. Her mother Fiona, told the school that her daughter might faint if she hurt herself, and that she may be too drowsy afterwards to continue with her schoolwork for the rest of that day.

During her early school years she continued to have frequent attacks, although not during the school day, but by the time she was seven, they had reduced in frequency to three or four a year.

RAS is an unpredictable condition; not every pain will trigger an attack and significant periods of time can pass without a seizure. Because of this, her mother has had to remain vigilant. At the time, and in some cases still today, many doctors are unaware of the condition. Fiona was brushed off when she asked for the drug atropine to be administered before Sarah had a tonsillectomy. It is recommended pre-anaesthesia, as it speeds up the heart and prevents it from stopping during an RAS attack. She was told it was unnecessary, only to discover that indeed, Sarah’s heart had stopped during the operation.

Now in secondary school, Sarah’s attacks are quite rare and she naturally is very embarrassed if she has a seizure in public. Sarah’s last attack came after a minor procedure at the GP surgery. She fell unconscious to the floor from standing, resulting in a prolonged concussion over several weeks. Sarah needed CT and MRI scans.

The family has received help and support from the charity STARS, which has worked to ensure that there is greater awareness of the condition within the medical profession.

Even though Sarah has infrequent attacks, her mum still worries every time a new situation arises and Sarah’s condition has to be considered. The family are grateful to Sarah’s head teacher, who has always been supportive and Sarah has never been treated differently at school to any other pupil. She has participated in theme park outings, trips abroad, and work experience.

It is now known that RAS has a genetic link. Sarah’s grandfather has also suffered several fainting attacks, and he has been diagnosed with vaso-vagal syncope, also a type of arrhythmia.
 

Read about more patients with RAS

Copyright © STARS