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[-] TomMasz@piefed.social 65 points 1 week ago

You're pretty much correct. AF is a heart rhythm abnormality, and if it persists, like it seems to here, it renders the heart unable to pump blood. It appears he might have been undergoing a prostate exam when this happened, since that's the usual reason for a digital rectal exam. You'd have to assume the doctor knew they had this condition to begin with.

[-] Ephera@lemmy.ml 2 points 6 days ago

Oh man, I thought "AF" meant "as fuck" like it usually does on the internet.

[-] Venator@lemmy.nz 1 points 6 days ago

Why is heart rhythm abbreviated to AF and not HR or something?

[-] medgremlin@midwest.social 3 points 6 days ago

HR is "Heart Rate" and AF is "Atrial Fibrillation". "Heart Rate" is just how many times the heart beats in a minute. "Atrial Fibrillation" is an abnormal rhythm of the heart beat and the rate at which the heart beats in AFib can be normal or fast.

[-] Klear@lemmy.world 55 points 1 week ago

Digital here means "using fingers" rather than "not analog", right?

[-] TomMasz@piefed.social 28 points 1 week ago
[-] Valmond@lemmy.world 22 points 1 week ago

Would the reverse be to use the anal-log?

[-] socsa@piefed.social 10 points 1 week ago

Most people can't handle that without a digital warmup first

[-] skulblaka@sh.itjust.works 27 points 1 week ago

And "sinus rhythm" in this case would be... normal sinusoidal heart function, right?

Incredible. Thanks for the translation.

[-] Swedneck@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 1 day ago

i choose to believe it means rhythmic sneezes

[-] icelimit@lemmy.ml 2 points 6 days ago

I thought hearts went 'lub dub' instead of 'wee woo' - I would've said it's more tangent or some transformed Gaussian at best?

[-] Nurse_Robot@lemmy.world 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

~~Nope. If I recall correctly all other interventions failed, so this was a hail Mary that happened to work~~

See other commenter below

[-] chuckleslord@lemmy.world 26 points 1 week ago

You recall incorrectly. It was a check for GI bleed prior to anticoagulant administration prior to cardioversion. They were literally running through pre-procedure tests in order to do the standard treatment for AF.

Source: The paper itself

[-] TomMasz@piefed.social 6 points 1 week ago

Interesting. That area of the body is pretty sensitive, I can see how it might generate enough sensation to affect other areas of the body.

[-] TommySalami@lemmy.world 9 points 1 week ago

Specifically it's very possible to stimulate the vagus nerve, which helps regulate heart rhythm, with an exam like this. This is a known effect, but typically in the context of a possible adverse effect of some procedures (e.g. enema).

this post was submitted on 28 Jul 2025
288 points (97.4% liked)

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