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What causes fainting? Scientists finally have an answer

Mouse experiments reveal the brain–heart connections that cause us to lose consciousness rapidly — and wake up moments later.
  1. Miryam Naddaf
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A painting of a young woman in Georgian clothing fainting in a theatre box, surrounded by anxious people.

The Effect of Melodrama (1830) by Louis Leopold Boilly. The precise mechanisms that control how and why people faint have long puzzled scientists. Credit: Leemage/Corbis via Getty

Whether as a result of heat, hunger, standing for too long or merely the sight of blood or needles, 40% of people faint at least once in their lives.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-03450-3

References

  1. Lovelace, J. W. et al. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06680-7 (2023).

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