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Your Heart Matters bus tour August 10th Posted or Updated on 29 Jul 2022

This year, UK heart valve disease charity Heart Valve Voice have partnered with Valve for Life for the Your Heart Matters bus tour. The project sees the team travelling across the UK offering free stethoscope checks to over 60s and raising awareness of heart valve disease.

On August 10th the bus will be in Manchester, home of the UK’s leading valve disease patient charity Heart Valve Voice. Chief Executive Officer Wil Woan comments: “We know that not all patients display symptoms or that some could mistake symptoms as signs of ageing or getting unfit, and this simple stethoscope check could change their lives. The Your Heart Matters bus is proof that early detection of heart conditions is so, so important and we were so impressed to see that about 1 in 10 patients who attended were found to have a previously undetected heart condition and they can now receive treatment.”

The event will take place at St Ann’s Square in the city centre and will run from 10am-3pm. Anyone over the age of 55 is invited to come down for a free stethoscope check and to learn more about this common, serious, but treatable condition.

St anns square location map

Manchester marks the 8th stop in the tour, and so far they have listened to over 2000 hearts and found over 200 previously undetected cardiac conditions. People who are found to have a cardiac condition are given a letter to take to their GP, outlining what was found and the need for further investigation.

One patient who owes his life to the bus is Robert Fowler, 87, from Leeds, “I visited the bus in Leeds and after having some heart checks I was given a GP letter by the staff there and was referred to my local cardiology team. I needed to have a heart procedure called TAVI. I had the procedure on 3rd February and I’ve since been checked over and my readings look good. I’m doing daily exercises, taking days out with my wife and no funny turns. I feel so lucky, as had I not got on the bus my heart problem could have got a lot worse, like a stroke or heart attack. I would urge anyone to visit the bus – you might find something that could save your life.”

If you would like to get involved and help promote the event locally, email info@heartvalvevoice.com and a member of the team will supply you with promotional materials.

Your heart matters