Battling Heart and Stroke

You are what you eat. And this study indicates that diet can determine the risk of heart attacks - in a global scale.So what’s your typical diet?

Canadian researchers at McMaster University reported in the Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association their results after studying the dietary patterns and heart attack rates in 52 countries. And it’s bad news for the Western diet.

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Can you recognize the signs of a heart attack? Although heart attacks can happen suddenly accompanied by the unmistakable chest pain - basically the attacks portrayed in films - most heart attacks start slowly and mildly so that they may be ignored, taken for granted, or misdiagnosed. According to the Medline Medical Encyclopedia:

A heart attack or acute myocardial infarction (MI) occurs when one of the arteries that supplies the heart muscle becomes blocked. Blockage may be caused by spasm of the artery or by atherosclerosis with acute clot formation. The blockage results in damaged tissue and a permanent loss of contraction of this portion of the heart muscle.

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Because of advances in medical science, prognosis for coronary heart patients is now better than ever. Better treatment, better survival rates and better life expectancy.

However, though these patients live longer, they are not necessary happier. Many suffer from postoperative depression and fear of death. More →

Every year, millions of people suffer from heart attack. In Central Europe alone, more than 600,000 cases of cardiac arrest occur annually - 9 per 10,000 inhabitants. Some are lucky to survive. Some don’t. Those who survived were probably recipients of intensive care.

A major heart attack entails that a patient be admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU). There are many other acute conditions aside from cardiac problems that require intensive care. Add to these a large number of trauma cases and ICUs can get very crowded indeed. ICUs however cost a lot of money and can be a burden to the health care system. The question always arises as to how to prioritize limited ICU space.

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Major sports events are fun - but also dangerous for the heart and the blood vessels of the fans. I have just lived through another major sports tournament this year - the European Football Championships held in Switzerland (my current place of residence) and Austria .

Two years ago, it was the World Football Championships (known as THE WORLD CUP) in Germany (my place of residence then) that I could experience.

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At last, a new device to help those with coronary heart disease. Coronary arteries are the main blood vessels which supply your heart muscles with their well-needed blood rich in oxygen. Unfortunately, these blood vessels can get clogged up by deposits of plaques. Plaques are made up of cholesterol-rich fat molecules, calcium and cellular debris in the blood. Plaque deposits can cause the coronary arteries to get narrow and can damage blood vessel walls, or cut off blood supply to the heart. Plaques can be classified in two categories:

• Hard plaques tend to stay in play and make arterial walls thick, hard, and inflexible - resulting in atherosclerosis.
• Soft plaques are more unstable and have lipid cores . These fatty deposits on arterial walls have the tendency to rupture or break off and get carried by the blood flow. They are then transported to other parts of the body can cause blood clots and result in a partial or total obstruction of an artery and cut off the blood supply to tissues and to vital organs such as the brain, the liver, or the kidney. When fatty plaques in the coronary artery rupture, blood clots can form which can lead to heart attacks.

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During those months when I had my heart problems, I experienced symptoms ranging from breathlessness to chronic tiredness. I was lucky because my professional background as a medical writer helped me recognize the early signs. I immediately consulted my GP and was referred to a cardiologist.

Apparently many people particularly women, fail to recognize symptoms of heart problems that eventually lead to even more serious consequences. This is according to a recent study reported during the American Heart Association’s 9th Scientific Forum on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research (QCOR) in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke.

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Two news items caught my attention this week regarding defibrillators.

News item # 1:

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By Eric Hartwell

Heart attacks, known by their medical name of acute myocardial infarction, is a state of disease that involves the interruption of the bloody supply to part of the heart. The result is a shortage of oxygen that can damage the heart tissue and potentially kill. Heart attacks are the leading cause of death all over the world. Major heart attack risk factors include a history of angina or vascular disease, a previous stroke or heart attack, old age, excessive alcohol, the abuse of illegal drugs, smoking, episodes of abnormal heart beat, obesity, high levels of stress, high or low cholesterol, high triglyceride levels, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

“Myocardial infarction” is a term derived from the scientific terms for the heart muscle, myocardium, and tissue death as a result of lack of oxygen – infarction. It should be noted that sudden cardiac death is different from a heart attack; a heart attack may or may not result in sudden cardiac death.

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By Eric Hartwell

Heart attacks are a common form of ischemic heart disease. The World Health Organization estimated in the year 2002 that over twelve percent of all worldwide deaths arose as a result of ischemic heart disease. In developed countries, it is the leading cause of death. In developing countries, however it comes third behind AIDS and lower respiratory infections.

Heart attacks, known by their medical name of acute myocardial infarction, is a state of disease that involves the interruption of the bloody supply to part of the heart. The result is a shortage of oxygen that can damage the heart tissue and potentially kill. Heart attacks are the leading cause of death all over the world. Major heart attack risk factors include a history of angina or vascular disease, a previous stroke or heart attack, old age, excessive alcohol, the abuse of illegal drugs, smoking, episodes of abnormal heart beat, obesity, high levels of stress, high or low cholesterol, high triglyceride levels, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

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