The Influence of Lunar Phases on Heart Disease

According to the UK Daily Mail, for thousands of years, people have feared the arrival of a full moon, which could turn humans into werewolves, or even mermaids. Last week, American physicians reported that when the moon begins to wane from full, surgical treatment for heart disease patients results in a significant decrease in mortality. This phenomenon is called the "Transylvania Effect," and some experts believe lunar gravitational effects influence people's heart function.

This study at Rhode Island Hospital statistically analyzed the conditions of 210 patients who underwent surgery between January 1996 and December 2011. These patients had surgery to repair cracks in the aortic inner layer, a rare disease called "aortic dissection aneurysm."

The study's director and chief cardiac surgeon, Dr. Frank Sellke, said: "Our statistical analysis found that during the days when the full moon wanes, the mortality rate for cardiac surgery is very low, and patients' hospital stays during the full moon period are correspondingly shortened."

According to the journal "Cardiovascular Interactions and Thoracic Surgery," patients' average hospital stay during the full moon period is 10 days, while during other lunar cycle phases, patients' average hospital stay is 14 days. This typical lunar influence is also called the "Transylvania Effect." For a long time, this phenomenon has puzzled medical experts: does the moon affect the human body, or are these data merely statistical coincidences?

In April this year, an article published in the European journal "Preventive Cardiology" supported the above views. Consistent with Rhode Island Hospital's statistics, researchers found that the waning moon phase after the full moon may protect people's hearts. This study came from Augsburg Central Hospital in Germany. Researchers analyzed cases of 16,000 heart attack patients and found that during the three days after the full moon, the probability of heart attacks decreased significantly.

Some experts believe this may be due to lunar gravitational force affecting human heart function. During the full moon, the gravitational forces of the moon and sun combine, and the gravitational force at this time is considered the strongest, possibly most beneficial to the human circulatory system.

Additionally, researchers from Vidyasagar University in India also discovered this special phenomenon. They conducted regular physical monitoring tests on 80 college students who exercised daily, measuring their heart rate, blood pressure, and monitoring exercise performance. The results showed that during the full moon period, people's cardiovascular systems are in optimal condition.