Ariel Sharon, Israel’s Prime Minister, suffered a mild stroke recently – doctors believe a hole in his heart contributed towards the stroke. Consequently, he will undergo an operation to repair the hole.
Sharon’s health is big news in Israel at the moment, with general elections just three months away. In two years’ time Sharon will be eighty years old. He is also very overweight.
What is a Hole in The Heart?
It is a lay person’s term to describe an abnormality of the heart that is present at the time of birth. There is a hole in the walls that separate the heart chambers.
The heart has four chambers. The top two chambers are called Atrium, while the bottom two are Ventricles.
The chambers have walls to separate them. The Atrial Septum is the wall that separates the top two chambers. The Ventricular Septum is a wall that separates the bottom two chambers.
If the top wall (Atrial Septum) has a hole, it is called an Atrial Septal Defect (ASD). A hole in the bottom wall (Ventricular Septum) is called a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD).
Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today