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People diagnosed with one of the most common inherited heart arrhythmias, called Long QT syndrome (LQTS), can safely engage in vigorous exercise without any added risk for sudden death or cardiac arrest, a new study finds. “Arrhythmic events were low in these appropriately treated individuals with LQTS in both those exercising vigorously and those exercising moderately or who were sedentary,” concluded a team led by Dr. Rachel Lampert, a professor of cardiology at Yale University School of Medicine. According to the Cleveland Clinic, LQTS involves delays in “recharging” the heart’s electrical system, which in turn can lead to a potentially dangerous irregular heartbeat. Medications, implanted devices and surgery are used to help control the condition, which is often inherited. According to one European study, LQTS occurs in about 1 in every 2,500 people, making it “the most commonly detected genetic electrical abnormality” of the heart, Lampert’s team said. Prior studies had suggested that vigorous exercise might help trigger cardiac arrest in people with LQTS, but as the researchers pointed out, those studies largely involved patients whose LQTS was only diagnosed after such a heart event. What about people who already know they have LQTS and are being appropriately treated? To find out, her team tracked outcomes over three years for 1,413 people diagnosed with LQTS at 37 medical sites in five countries. These people ranged… read on > read on >