Overview
Heart Attack is a condition when the muscles of heart damage due to less or no supply of oxygen. This generally happens when the arteries that take oxygenated blood to the muscles of the heart get blocked by something. Heart attack is also called myocardial infarction.
Causes
Let's first see why a heart attack happens. Your heart muscles are the only muscles in your body that never stop working. They need a constant supply of oxygen rich blood to keep working. Various coronary arteries take blood to different parts of the heart. When these arteries get blocked due to some reason, they can't take proper amounts of blood to your heart muscles.
There are various reasons because of which your artery can get blocked.
1.Coronary artery disease
2. Formation of plaque in the arteries due to high cholesterol which blocks the artery.
3. Blood clots in the arteries. Plaque due to fats, proteins and inflammatory cells. This plaque is hard on the outer side and soft on the inner side, because of which, it cracks sometimes. The body sends platelets to repair this causing clots of blood.
4. Spasm in the coronary artery. In this the artery spasm on and off or restricts the supply of blood to your heart causing a myocardial infarction.
There are some other lifestyle reasons because of which heart attacks happen.
1.Smoking
3. Obesity
5. Diabetes (causes silent heart attack)
6. Stress
7. Alcohol consumption
People who are more than 65 years of age are more at risk for a heart attack than others. A study has shown men are more prone to heart attacks than women.
Symptoms
The symptoms of heart attack may vary from person to person. In some symptoms are really acute while in some they are subtle.
Some people suffer a silent heart attack. In this there are almost no symptoms and the person suffers a heart attack while resting. And as there are no symptoms, the heart attack converts into heart failure causing death. People who have diabetes are more at risk for a silent heart attack.
Symptoms or warning signs that you might be having a heart attack include the following.
1.Discomfort, heaviness, tightness and pain in the chest area or below your breast bone.
2. Sweating
3. Fast or uneven heart beat
4. Weakness
5. Fatigue
6. Nausea
7. Dizziness
8. Shortness of breath
Prevention
Sometimes there are warning signs of heart attack and sometimes it's sudden. If you understand the severity of the attack in time then the person could be saved. Nowadays heart attacks can happen to anyone and any time. From young adults to old people, everyone is at risk of a heart attack because of the lifestyle most people live. There are things that you can do to prevent heart attack.
1.Avoid Smoking
2. Exercise daily
3. Reduce alcohol consumption
4. Go for stress management
5. Go for regular heart checkups
6. Reduce weight if you are obese
7. Keep your diabetes controlled
8. Keep the LDL level low
Conclusion
Heart attack is a very severe medical condition that needs to be treated on time. If not, then the damage on the heart muscles increases and that converts heart attack into heart failure. Heart failure is the condition when the heart stops working completely, causing death.
You should call for an ambulance immediately if you see even one sign of heart attack. There are various tests and treatments available for the diagnosis and cure of heart attack. A trained cardiologist (a heart specialist doctor) will prescribe you according to the severity of the heart attack. Do not try to take things in your hands during a heart attack, call a doctor and let him do the work.
Stay Safe, Stay Healthy and fit and Stay tuned for more.
Please Share and Leave a comment if you liked it, it'll make our day.
Thank you for reading this.
Comments
Post a Comment