Heart Attack Blood

HEART ATTACK

What is a Heart Attack?

A heart attack or commonly known as myocardial infarction is produced when the muscle of our heart do not receive the blood needed to function.

Our body carries blood full of oxygen and other nutrients, which are needed for the different organs to function and maintain our body alive. The heart is surrounded by arteries called Coronary Arteries. When one or more of these coronary arteries are “blocked inside by fatty deposits called plaque” (Parks, 2007), our heart then starts to “starve for the lack of oxygen and other nutrients”. The heart at this point is not dead yet, but action needs to be taken sooner than later (American Heart Association, 1996, p. 28).

What kind of symptoms and signs I have to be aware of if I or someone else suffers a heart attack?

According to Sevcec from the Noticiero Telemundo, a Spanish public broadcast, only one of four people in US recognizes a heart attack symptom. Most of them ignore that the first thing to do is to call 911. There are many different symptoms, but “the most common symptom described by many people is a severe pain” (Parks, 2007). Even this is the most common symptom “it only occurs in half of patients with a heart attack” (“Anonymous,” 2006). The AHA says that this pain sometimes goes away and then returns (p. 269).

Parks (2007) mentioned some other common symptom described by people such as:

• Pain in the upper belly (like heartburn).

• Sweating.

• Nausea and vomiting.

• Trouble breathing.

• A feeling that their heart is racing or pounding (palpitations).

• Feeling weak or very tired.

• Feeling dizzy or fainting.

• Abdominal pain (“Anonymous”, 2006).

Also, depression contributes to heart failure, known as Fibrosis. The reason of this is because the heart enlarges and tissue becomes too rigid and causes difficulty in pumping the blood. (Sevcec, 2008).

Can a heart attack be treated?

Yes, it can be treated. There exist treatments that are necessary to start right away to save someone's life or even our own life. When we or someone is suffering a heart attack, we have to act quickly, and “dial 911 or an emergency rescue service” (AHA, 1996, p. 11) for help. The AHA also recommends taking two crushed, dissolved aspirins in water immediately. They say that Aspirin is a blood thinner that helps our blood to flow through the artery blocked to get to the part of the heart that is starving from blood. Although this is not a general treatment, the AHA says, research has proven that taking aspirin during a heart attack is helpful while getting to the hospital to start other heart-saving measures. Once we are at the hospital the medical team will start treatment by first administering oxygen through a tube that enters through the nose. Followed by these other medications given are: Nitroglycerin and morphine that decreases blood pressure to dilate the blood ways and increase blood flow. Anticlotting medications like Heparin, Enoxaparin, Fondaparinux, Glycoprotein, etc, are also given immediately to all patients. (“Anonymous,” 2006). While these medications help out the heart, the doctor then proceeds with the different tests to “confirm that a heart attack did occur” (AHA, 1996, p. 43). As an example of these tests, one that is usually done is an electrocardiogram (EKG) that can detect signs of poor blood flow, heart muscle damage, abnormal heart beats, and other heart problems (“Anonymous,” 2006).

Other tests mentioned by the AHA Guide are: electrocardiography, monitoring devices to check for arrhythmias, blood tests, X-ray, and echocardiography. Based on these tests the doctor may use other type of tests like the imaging tests, just to mention some of them: Cardiac Catheterization or Angiography, Magnetic Resonance Imaging or MRI, etc.

Furthermore, follow up tests and evaluations are done to establish the person's heart condition.

Ways to prevent a heart attack:

To prevent a heart attack is very important; therefore we ought to implement important changes in our diet and other life behaviors. Our diet habits are very important to prevent a heart attack. Like said before, a heart attack occurs when fatty deposits are blocking the heart arteries. Therefore, it's important that we eat healthy food such as vegetables, fruits, olive oil instead of regular oil, etc. Most of animal products contain cholesterol (fat) that later on is not processed by our body, and gets stocked in the arteries and veins by where blood flows from and to the heart. It is then, when it can become a heart attack.

Another very healthy way is to exercise regularly. When speaking of physical exercise, some people think that we have to make bigger efforts to keep ourselves physically well. There is better news about something that is good, helpful and easy to do. Going out for a quick walk for 20 minutes at least will help our heart to maintain its rhythm, to keep our arteries cleaned, and to improve the flow of the blood into the heart. It's also good not only for our blood circulation, but for the well functioning of the body as well as the mind as a whole.

Parks mentions some other steps to improve our health as well as to prevent a heart attack:

• Don't smoke, and avoid secondhand smoke. Quitting smoking can quickly reduce the risk of another heart attack or death.

• Eat a heart-healthy diet that includes plenty of fish, fruits, vegetables, beans, high-fiber grains and bread, and olive oil.

• Get regular exercise on most, preferably all, days of the week.

• Control your cholesterol and blood pressure.

• If you have diabetes, keep your blood sugar as close to normal as possible.

• Lower your stress level. Stress can damage your heart.

• Take a daily aspirin if your doctor advises it.

• Get a flu shot every year.

• Take all of your medicines correctly. Taking medicine can lower your risk of having another heart attack or dying from coronary artery disease.

Some important points we need to know about the differences between men and women in heart disease:

In 1988 and 1989, the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research made a study (Legato, 2007) based on the differences in between women and men related to heart disease. They mentioned some as follows:

Heart disease symptoms begin in men sooner (age 35) than in women, while women are protected until they are 45-50 from having symptoms. Although by age 60, women are as likely to have a heart attack as men. Another difference found was that women are more likely to die from the first heart attack than men, because women tend to have a second heart attack within a year of having the first one. One of the risk factors is that a heart disease increases 4 to 6 times for a female. Meanwhile, men diagnosed with diabetes doubles the risk for a heart disease than in women.

References

American Heart Association (1996). Guide to Heart Attack Treatment, Recovery, and Prevention. New

York, NY: American Heart Association.

Anonymous. (2006, April 15). Heart Attack and Acute Coronary Syndrome in-Depth.

<http://healthguide.howstuffworks.com/heart-attack-and-acute-coronary-syndrome-in-depth.htm> 30 Jan. 2008.

Legato, Marianne. (Founder & Editor) (2007) What are the Differences between men and women in Heart

Disease? [Video] . Retrieved March 3, 2008, from the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center website:

http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/videos/h.htm

Sevcec, Pedro. (Executive Producer) (2008, February 21) Noticiero Telemundo [Television broadcast].

Miami, Fl. Public Hispanic Broadcasting Services.

Parks, Robin. 14 May. 2007 Heart Attack and Unstable Angina.

<http://12.42.224.229/library/healthguide/en-us//illnessconditions/topic.asp?hwid=tx230> 30 Jan. 2008.