Joan Burton attempts to break world record for kissing chain

Tánaiste Joan Burton and her husband took part in an attempt to break the Guinness world record for the longest kissing chain yesterday in Dublin.

The 293-person chain fell 59 kissers short of breaking the record.

The event was organised by the Pulmonary Hypertension (PH) Association to raise awareness about the rare disease which most commonly affects young women.

Fingal County Councillor Jack Chambers also joined the chain.

"Joan Burton is in the Labour Party, and Jack Chambers is Fianna Fáil. So they weren't kissing each other," said organiser Regina Prenderville of the PH Association.

Participants wore blue lipstick to highlight a common symptom of PH. Other symptoms include fatigue, shortness of breath and swollen ankles and legs. PH is difficult to diagnose because it shares many symptoms with other conditions like asthma.

Untreated, PH has a prognosis worse than that of many forms of cancer. There is no cure, but there are effective treatments that can help patients if they are diagnosed early in the disease progression.