Heart Attack :
Coronary artery is the vessel that feeds heart with blood and heart attack happens when a blood clot hinders the floe of blood through the coronary artery. Such interrupted rush of blood to the heart can not only damage but also destroy the muscles of heart. A long time ago heart attack was considered to be a fatal condition as the causes were unknown
A long time ago heart attack was considered to be a fatal condition as the causes were unknown. Due to the advancement in diagnosis, improvement in treatment and an increased awareness of signs and symptoms leading to heart attack it is today possible to survive the heart attack.
One’s recovery from heart attack depends upon the eating habits, exercise schedule, and one’s dealing with stressful situations. There are a number of factors that can narrow one’s coronary artery and the best way to avoid the risk of getting a heart attack is to change one’s life style in time.
Symptoms of heart attack
Common signs and symptoms of a heart attack are:
- Squeezing pain, pressure or fullness in the chest that lasts for more than few minutes
- Pain that is not limited to the chest but outreaching to the arms, shoulders, back and teeth jaw
- In the upper abdomen having prolonged pain
- Impending sense of doom
- Shortness of breath
- Sweating
- Fainting
- Nausea and vomiting
- Repeated pain in the chest
It is worth remembering that the signs and symptoms of heart attack in women may be less noticeable or different from the signs and symptoms of heart attack in men. In addition to the symptoms mentioned above there are some additional signs that can be watched in the women who may have a heart attack in future:
- Heart-burn or abdominal pain
- Moist skin
- Dizziness
- Unusual fatigue
It is not necessary that all those people who suffer from heart attack have same kind of signs and symptoms; moreover it is not necessary that the degree of signs and symptoms in all people remain same. It is also pertinent to remember that a person who has more signs is more likely to suffer from a heart attack than others.
One can have a heart attack at any time – anywhere in any condition whether resting or playing or working in routine. In some cases heart attack comes suddenly in other the patient has prior signs and symptoms as a warning. The signs and symptoms can appear months, days or even hours before the heart attack. The earliest prediction of a heart attack is lasting pain (angina) that starts with exertion and relieved with rest. The reason of angina is less flow of blood to the heart that results in the deficiency of oxygen known as cardiac ischemia.
Causes of Heart Attack
Heart attack is medically referred as myocardial infarction. Myo points at muscle, cardio to heart and infract to the death of the heart tissues due to the lack of oxygen. Heart needs smooth flow of blood like all other parts of body. In case heart receives less blood its cells starts to get damaged and results in pressure or pain. In case the blood flow is not restored to the heart than the tissues of heart keeps on dying and results in scars that replace the working tissues of heart. The insufficient blood flow can also lead to heart rhythms that are fatal.
Heart attack is the outcome of blockage in more than one artery that are responsible for supplying blood to the heart. Such arteries are called coronary arteries and situates like a crown around the heart. The builds up of cholesterol are responsible for narrowing the coronary artery. These blocking materials are called plaques and exist in arteries throughout the body and are known as atherosclerosis.
Any plaque of these plaques can rupture and form a blood clot in the site of the rupture when heart attack strikes. The flow of blood to the heart can completely block in case the blood clot is large enough to block he artery. Coronary artery disease is the condition when atherosclerosis narrows the coronary arteries. Coronary artery disease is the biggest cause of heart attack.
A coronary artery spasm can shut down the flow of blood to a certain muscle of heart in some unusual cases. Such a life threatening spasm can be caused by the use of drug such as cocaine.
Medically speaking the heart attack is the end of a process that usually spans over few hours. As minutes pass by more and more heart tissues are deprived of blood and with time deteriorates or even dies.
Risk Factors of Heart Disease
Coronary risk factors are the factors that can increase one’s risk to have a heart attack. These factors are responsible for contributing in the establishment of atherosclerosis that can narrow the arteries throughout the body in addition to the coronary arteries that take blood to your heart. We have hear by encompassed some of the reasons that can lead one to the coronary risk factors.
Smoking tobacco:
the long term exposure of a person to the smoke or even the passive smoking can allow the deposits of cholesterol and other builds up to collect and settle down in the way of the blood in arteries. The risk factor of forming blood clots that leads to heart attack is also enhanced by the smoking.
Hypertension:
blood pressure is the measure of the amount of blood that heart pumps and the amount of resistance offered by arteries to the flow of blood. An over time BP can damage one’s heart by initiating atherosclerosis. It is true that the rise in blood pressure corresponds with increasing age but the Americans develop blood pressure due to their large intake of salt in day to day diet and over-weight. High blood pressure can also be a genetic problem.
Triglyceride level and high blood cholesterol:
a major part of deposits that hinder in the path of arteries is cholesterol. High level of low quality or bad cholesterol in one’ body multiplies the risk of having a heart attack. Low density lipoprotein (LDL) commonly named as bad cholesterol is famous for narrowing the arteries. High LDL is a byproduct of diet saturated with high fats and cholesterol and is undesirable to body. Triglycerides are a type of fat that is constituted in our diet, high level of triglycerides is also not required. Moreover, the high level of high density lipoprotein cholesterol helps the body in cleaning excessive cholesterol and also helps in decreasing the risk of acquiring a heart attack.
Lack of exercise:
the life without physical activity increased the cholesterol level in blood and obesity. The cardiovascular fitness of those people who regularly takes aerobic exercise is far better that those who do not and the risk of suffering from heart attack is less in those who regularly do aerobics. Exercise is very helpful in controlling and lowering high blood pressure.
Obesity:
people whose body mass index are 30 or higher, mean those who have high portion of fat are more likely to suffer from heart attack. Obesity increases the risk of heart attack because it is related to the high cholesterol level in blood and also plays vital part in diabetes and high blood pressure.
Diabetes:
diabetes is a disease that refers to the body’s inability to properly utilize insulin or producing insulin. Insulin is secreted by the pancreas and enables the body cells to utilize glucose. Diabetes mostly appears in middle age and in over weight people but it is also diagnosed in children. Diabetes increases the risk of developing heart attack by many folds.
Stress:
the right attitude at critical circumstances play a significant role in determining one’s stress level. In case one is tense then under nervous tension he or she may rely upon smoking or overeating. Too much over eating leads to obesity and too much stress and anger increases blood pressure. Stress and anger are a common cause to trigger a heart attack.
Drugs/Alcohol:
the HDL (high density lipoprotein) level is increased if alcohol is taken in moderation. This can work as a shield against heart attack. However excess of everything is bad. A man must not drink more than two drinks a day where a woman must not exceed the limit of one drink a day. Triglycerides level and the blood pressure is increased by the excessive use of alcohol and in turn increases one’s exposure to heart attack. Other drugs like cocaine also increase the risk of developing heart attack.
Family history:
family history is a factor that matters in a number of diseases. If one’s grandparents, parents or siblings have suffered from a heart attack it points that the person is also at risk. It is possible that a certain family has a genetic status that increases the cholesterol level of the blood. It is also important that high blood pressure runs into a number of families.
Homocysteine, fibrinogen and C-reactive protein:
all those people whose level of homocysteine, fibrinogen and C-reactive protein is high are at greater risk of suffering from heart attack. Research has suggested that the level of homocysteine can be lowered by the use of folic acid supplements and of course by the healthy diet. Levels of fibrinogen and C-reactive protein can be controlled by discouraging other factors that can lead to a heart attack such as quitting smoking, exercising and lowering the intake of cholesterol.
People can help themselves in reducing the risk factor of going through first or second heart attack. However there is no hard and fast rule that the above mentioned risk factors will only lead one to a heart attack. There could be other reasons as research is still going on. The risk of suffering from a heart attack is more in men as compared to women. After the age of 55 or after menopause the risk of developing a heart attack increases in women. Please remember that if your mother has a heart trouble at the age of 65 and your father has a heart attack at the age of 55 then you are most likely to suffer from a heart attack. It is advised to change your eating habits and life style as early as possible.
