Dictionary

soldier's heart en · NOUN

Etymology

Dating to the American Civil War.

Meanings

1. (obsolete, uncountable) Da Costa's syndrome, a disorder of the heart related to combat.
   • Parkinson and Koefod have investigated the immediate effect of smoking five cigarettes in forty minutes on the circulation of forty smokers, of whom thirty were suffering from soldier's heart and ten were healthy soldiers. 1918, Arthur F. Hurst, Medical diseases of the war, page 285:
   • The extension of our knowledge in regard to cardiac disorders and arrhythmias was largely incorporated in the seventh edition of this work, but to them has been added the more recent studies upon Effort Syndrome or Soldier's Heart. 1920, Austin Flint, A manual of physical diagnosis, page iv:
   • Whereas shell shock was relatively infrequent in other campaigns, soldier's heart was relatively frequent ... 1916, The Times History of the War, page 334:

Relateds

shell shock · post-traumatic stress disorder · operational exhaustion · combat fatigue · battle fatigue · combat stress reaction