Main Killer In Malaysia and Around The World
EACH year, about 17.5 million
lives are claimed by the world's largest killer - heart disease and stroke. In
the U.S heart attack is the number one killer of both men and women. Each year,
about 1.1 million Americans suffer a heart attack, and 460,000 of these are
fatal. It is same in Malaysia n Malaysia, heart disease has been the number one
killer for the past three decades. And bear in mind that according to an expert the number one cause of death among
women in Malaysia is still heart disease and not cancer as most people believe.
Another frightening fact,
according statistics in 2009 from the Health Ministry estimated that about one
in four deaths in government hospitals are attributed to either heart or
strokes.
What is Heart Attack?
Heart attack results from blood
vessel disease in the heart. Coronary heart disease (CHD), sometimes referred
to as coronary after disease (CAD), are general names for heart attack (and
angina).
A heart attack, or myocardial
infarction, occurs when the blood supply to part of the heart muscle itself
(the myocardium) is severely reduced or stopped. This occurs when one of the
coronary arteries (the arteries that supply blood to the heart muscle) is
blocked by an obstruction, such as a blood clot that has formed on plaque due
to atherosclerosis. Such an event is sometimes called a coronary thrombosis or
coronary occlusion.
If the blood supply is cut off
drastically or for a long time, muscle cells suffer irreversible injury and
die. Disability or death can result, depending on how much heart muscle is
damaged. Sometimes a coronary artery temporarily contracts or goes into spasm.
When this happens the artery narrows and blood flow to part of the heart muscle
decreases or even stops. What causes a spasm is unclear, but it can occur in
normal blood vessels as well as vessels partially blocked by atheroscleorosis.
If a spasm is severe, a heart attach may result.
What are the Symptoms of a Heart Attack?
Sometimes the first indications
of a heart attack come as warning signals. The actual diagnosis of a heart
attack must be made by a physician who has studied the results of several
tests. Besides reviewing a patient's complete medical history and giving a
physical examination, a doctor will use an electrocardiogram (ECG) to discover
any abnormalities caused by damage to the heart. Sometimes a blood test is used
to detect abnormal levels of certain enzymes in the bloodstream.
How is a Heart Attack Treated?
When a heart attack occurs, it's
critical to recognize the signals and respond immediately. Delaying may
increase the damage to the heart and reduce the chance of survival. Anyone
experiencing the warning signals of a heart attack should be taken immediately
to the nearest hospital with 24-hour emergency cardiac care. People who become
unconscious before reaching the emergency room may receive emergency
cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
Most communities have an
emergency cardiac care system that can quickly respond. This prompt care for
heart attack victims dramatically reduces damage to the heart. In fact, 80
percent of heart attack survivors can return to work within three months.
Prompt care for heart attack victims isn't the only reason so many people
recover so quickly, but it's an important one.
The importance of time cannot be
overemphasized. When a coronary artery gets blocked, the heart muscle doesn't
die instantaneously - damage increases the longer an artery remains blocked. If
a victim gets to an emergency room fast enough a form of reperfusion therapy
(called thrombolysis) sometimes can be performed. It involves injecting
injecting a thrombolytic (clot-dissolving) agent, such as streptokinase,
urokinase or TPA (tissue plasminogen activator), to dissolve a clot in a
coronary artery and restore some blood flow. There drugs must be used within a
few (usually 1 -3) hours of a heart attack for best effect. The sooner a drug
is used, the more effective it's likely to be.
In the weeks following a heart
attack, either PTCA (balloon angioplasty) or coronary artery bypass surgery may
be performed to improve the blood supply to the heart muscle. Once part of the
heart muscle dies, its function can't be restored. Function may be restored to areas
with decreased blood flow, however.
Is There Any Way to Reduce the Chance of a Heart Attack?
Many scientific studies show that
certain characteristics increase the risk of coronary heart disease. The four
major modifiable risk factors are cigarette / tobacco smoke, high blood
cholesterol, high blood pressure and physical inactivity. Other contributing
risk factors are diabetes mellitus and obesity.
Experts strongly
urges people to control their modifiable risk factors. .
So guys please take care of your
heart. Stop smoking and exercise regularly. Check your blood pressure and cholesterol
level.
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