NHS 'must improve heart healthcare'

Better care for people with irregular heartbeats could significantly reduce the number of people experiencing strokes, it has been claimed.

The Keeping Our Finger on the Pulse report, produced by the Atrial Fibrillation Association and the Stroke Association in Wales, suggests that more should be done to help patients with palpitations or arrhythmia, the BBC reports.

Better detection techniques could help the NHS to identify potential problems before they develop, reducing the risk of stroke while cutting the £100 million spent on the issue in Wales each year.

Trudie Lobban MBE, founder and chief executive of the Atrial Fibrillation, told the broadcaster: "This is a bleak picture but it doesn't need to be this way.

"Some relatively straightforward measures could transform the situation socially, medically and financially."

The Stroke Association estimates that someone in the UK has a stroke every five minutes - the equivalent of more than 150,000 cases each year.

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