Tim Thorne, 43, had never been ill, was very fit and went to the gym regularly. So it was with utter shock he discovered that not cleaning his teeth properly had harmed his heart.

“Last Christmas everyone seemed to come down with flu, so when I ran a high temperature and began to lose weight, I thought nothing of it. As a self-employed barrister, I couldn’t really afford to take much time off, so I took painkillers and carried on.

“Over the next few weeks though I didn’t get any better – worse in fact. I had to go to Germany for work and once out there colleagues were horrified at the change in me.  They sent me to a local doctor who was so concerned he advised me to go to a hospital immediately. I decided to cut short my trip and return home right away.

"Once back in the UK, my girlfriend took me straight to A&E at Arrowe Park Hospital. An ECG showed that my heart had split and blood was leaking and that only 70% of my heart was functioning properly.

“Further tests revealed that I had endocarditis – infection of the heart lining – which had attacked the mitral valve and made it split. If I hadn’t gone to hospital, there’s no doubt that I would have died.

“I needed open heart surgery which stunned me. The four specialists that operated on me eventually concluded that bleeding gums had allowed an unusual microbe to enter my bloodstream where it went on to attack the mitrail valve around my heart.

“If it hadn’t been so traumatic I would have laughed. I was so sure being fit and going to the gym would keep me healthy when ironically it was my humble teeth and gums that almost killed me.

“I was in hospital for more than three months to allow the antibiotics to destroy the endocarditis. Now I use interdental brushes and floss every day. If I need the dentist now I have to take antibiotics before and after going to make sure the microbe can’t attack again.

“My experience has made me want to help hospitals move towards more keyhole surgery rather than the intrusive open heart surgery. That’s why I ran a 10K in Blenheim on Sunday 16 September for BHF to help raise money for the heart patients of the future.

“Training is helping to increase my heart health and although I still feel muscular pain, it is a good reminder of what I have been through. Life is so precious. People should live life to the full – it could easily be your last day. Having heart disease is a complete leveller. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do – this can happen to anyone.”

If you would like to help Tim raise funds for the BHF please visit this link.