Cardiac arrhythmia

Through the Wellbeing of Women, Sands is funding a research project into cardiac arryhthmias (a disturbance of the normal electrical rhythm of the heart) to discover whether this inherited condition may be the cause of some stillbirths which are currently described as 'unexplained'. The work will take place over two years in University College London, St Barts and Great Ormond Street hospitals and will be led by Dr Sudin Thayyil.

The research will involve carrying out further, more indepth post mortem examinations on babies whose deaths have been classified as 'unexplained stillbirths', with the consent of parents. Finding out whether cardiac arrhythmia has a role to play in the baby's death will not only provide answers for some parents, but will mean it is possible to counsel parents, to identify family members who might also be at risk of heart problems and to prevent problems in any subsequent pregnancies.