EVERYTHING YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT HEART ATTACKS
Do you know about heart attacks? These could be life threatening if aren’t taken care on time. So Are you really prepared to face a heart attack emergency?
Heart Attacks are the death of a segment caused because of the cut in blood supply leading to the death of the tissue. This supply shortage could be the result of a blood clot.
HOW WOULD YOU KNOW, YOU ARE HAVING A HEART ATTACK?
Some of the most common symptoms you would be facing are feeling of pressure tightness pain or squeezing in the chest , jaw , arms or back. The other common signs could be:-
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Coughing
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Nausea
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Vomiting
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Dizziness
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Shortness of breath called Dyspnea
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Excessive sweating
Some attacks do not show symptoms like the ones that occur to diabetic patients.
These can start off slowly with mild pains and their severity varies from person to person.
What would you do in emergency conditions?
The treatment for this has to be quick since immediate actions helps in getting better results. The longer you wait for the treatment the greater the threat is.
Clot busting and artery opening and medications including putting a stent in blocked Artery are the medical ways opted by doctors.
But What Would you do at such times
- Call the emergency medical services or an ambulance. Keep the person calm till the help reaches
- If the person is not allergic to aspirin , give him chew-able tablets
- If the person stops breathing give him a CPR.
WHAT IS CPR ?
CPR stands for Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation
The process includes-
- Manual chest compression’s
- Using a defibrillator – it is a method used by doctors also called as the shock treatment
You can use small objects as defibrillator during emergencies.
Do you know why are these life threatening attacks are caused?
A heart attack is caused when one or more of your coronary arteries are blocked. Over the time build-up of various substances including cholesterol can cause coronary artery disease which in turn is responsible for heart attacks. During heart attack one of these plaques can rupture and spill cholesterol and other substances in the blood stream. A blood clot is formed at the site of rupture and if it is large enough then the heart muscles are starved of oxygen and nutrients by blocking the blood flow.
Men above the age of 45 and women above 55 are prone to such attacks. Intake of tobacco in any form can also increase risk of heart attacks. Overtime high Blood pressure leads to damage of arteries which can cause attacks. High level of low density lipoprotein (LDL) also called as bad cholesterol can cause heart attacks as well on the other hand high levels of high density cholesterol lowers the risk. Obesity is associated with high levels of cholesterol which can lead to heart attacks including metabolic syndrome which covers all the above i.e blood pressure, cholesterol and also high blood sugar levels which indicates that diabetes is also one of the major reasons behind heart attacks. Lack of physical activity or stress can also lead to us being prone to heart attacks. One should also look up to the family history, since if your close relatives have had early heart attacks then you are at an increased risk. Also the use of drugs like cocaine amphetamines etc. is also responsible for heart diseases. Also Preeclampsia a condition of high blood pressure during pregnancy is also responsible while diseases like rheumatoid arthritis or Lupus are also responsible for these heart attacks.
People often get confused between heart attacks and cardiac arrest. Heart attacks are the conditions where the supply of blood to the heart muscle is cut off and cardiac arrest is the condition where the heart muscle stops working or the heart stops beating. Heart attacks may lead to cardiac arrest if not treated on time.