Hollywood icon Catherine O'Hara's death has raised questions about how and what caused her demise. The Schitt's Creek star died at the age of 71 following a medical emergency in Los Angeles.
O'Hara was reportedly transported to the nearby hospital in a serious condition. Though an official cause of death has not yet announced, her death led to renewed attention on a rare medical condition she had: dextrocardia with situs inversus.
What is dextrocardia?
Dextrocardia is a rare congenital heart defect where your heart is on the right side of your chest. Though it is not a dangerous condition, when this occurs along with other heart defects or genetic disorders like situs inversus or heterotaxy syndrome, it requires treatment.
In the case of O'Hara, dextrocardia occurred along with situs inversus. She had revealed her condition earlier in a 2021 video interview.
"I'm a freak!" she had said, recalling how she discovered the condition.
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However, it remains unclear whether her heart condition had anything to do with her death. Her agency had said that she passed away, "following a brief illness."
In dextrocardia with situs inversus, your heart is a mirror image, but other organs in your chest and belly are flipped. Situs inversus can occur as a feature of genetic disorders, notes the Cleveland Clinic.
Symptoms of dextrocardia
*Fatigue
*Frequent lung or sinus infections
*Irregular heartbeat
*Pale-looking skin
*Getting out of breath or extremely tired during physical activity
*Trouble gaining weight
*Skin and eyes that look yellow
People who are often diagnosed with dextrocardia are often diagnosed with other forms of congenital heart disease at the same time, including double inlet left ventricle, double outlet right ventricle, pulmonary stenosis and so on.