Friday 27th March 2015

Heart Valve Voice, the UK’s only heart valve disease charity, has teamed up with Crewe Alexandra FC to host a one-day public heart valve disease screening event on Saturday 18th April.

Both Heart Valve Voice and Crewe Alexandra are inviting members of the general public over the age of 65 years to come along to the valve disease check up event. Trained healthcare professionals will use high-tech equipment to scan hearts painlessly and quickly, with the consultation taking only 20 minutes. Once the scan is complete, those involved can continue their day as normal.

Crewe Alexandra’s Academy Manager and former manager Dario Gradi is a former heart valve disease patient and member of Heart Valve Voice's team of Ambassadors: “Realising that you have heart valve disease is difficult as the symptoms – breathlessness, feeling tired and chest pains – can be mistaken for ageing. However, like me, it can be well treated if it is diagnosed early. I would encourage as many people as possible to come along to the check up – when in doubt, get your heart checked out.” Dario recently met Crewe and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson to discuss the under-diagnosis of heart valve disease and the danger posed to the general public.

Heart valve disease is an age-related illness and represents a significant challenge in the UK. Approximately one million people over the age of 60 are thought to be affected by heart valve disease and over half of patients with untreated severe symptomatic heart valve disease die within two years. Many heart valve disease symptoms are wrongly attributed to natural ageing (tiredness, breathlessness and difficulty exercising), with many people with heart valve disease left undiagnosed and untreated – with an ageing population, this should be of increasing concern to the UK.

Heart Valve Voice’s heart check up event is due to take place on the morning of Saturday 18th April at the football ground, Gresty Road.