While doctors found men were more at risk than women, they found cardiac arrests during sex is a rarity.
According to a new study published by the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, men are more likely to die during sex than women.
The findings indicate that sex is responsible for one in 100 sudden cardiac arrests in men. While, only one in 1,000 women are at risk.
The study examined 4,557 cardiac arrests over several years in Portland, Oregon. And research showed that 34 cases occurred during sexual intercourse or in the following hour.
Men suffered two-thirds of overall cardiac arrests but in terms of sex-induced heart complications, 32 out of 34 cases were male. The ages of patients who suffered sudden cardiac arrest during sex ranged from 34 to 83.
Though it is not exactly clear why men are more likely to die during sex than women.
Approximately 1,000 people die from cardiac arrest in the UK every year
Dr Sumeet Chugh, a cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, revealed that it may be as a consequence to dangerous medications which did not show up in the study.
He also stated: “Even though SCA (sudden cardiac arrest) during sexual activity was witnessed by a partner, bystander CPR was performed in only one third of the cases.”
An earlier report published in 2012 also suggested some further possible reasons.
The study stated: “The majority (75 percent) were having extramarital sexual activity, in most cases with a younger partner in an unfamiliar setting and/or after excessive food and alcohol consumption.”
According to the British Heart Foundation, approximately 10,000 people die in the UK each year from cardiac arrest.
According to the 2011 meta-analysis in the Journal of the American Medical Association, each additional hour of sexual activity per week resulted in an increased risk of two to three myocardial infractions and one sudden cardiac death per 10,000 person-years.
