Tag Archives: heart attack

Posted on by MaryO

A heart attack occurs about every 20 seconds with a heart attack death about every minute…

Dr. Michelle Capdeville's avatarDr. Michelle Capdeville, Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology

  • 1.5 million heart attacks occur in the United States each year with 500,000 deaths.
  • More than 233,000 women die annually from cardiovascular disease.
  • A heart attack occurs about every 20 seconds with a heart attack death about every minute.
  • Sudden death is more common among women with heart attack.
  • The National Registry of Myocardial Infarctions (New England Journal Med., 22Jul99) reports that women have a worse outcome than men after having a heart attack. Data showed that women under the age of 50 had twice the mortality of men after having a heart attack. Variances likely reflect increased severity of the disease in younger women.
  • Almost 14 million Americans have a history of heart attack or angina.
  • About 50% of deaths occur within one hour of the heart attack ––outside a hospital.
  • There is a 6% to 9% early mortality from heart attack for those who survive long enough to…

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Heart Attacks and Depression

Posted on by MaryO

Studies show that 48 percent of people can develop depression following a heart attack. But experts say this depression may not be purely psychological. After a cardiac event, the heart may be unable to pump blood as efficiently—causing patients to lose energy.

In addition, chemicals are released in the brain that can work to physiologically cause mood changes. Interestingly, the same study showed that women who suffer heart attacks are 20 percent more likely to develop depression.

The good news: most of these cases can be treated with anti-depressant drugs.

Silent Heart Attacks: Symptoms You Might Not Recognize

Posted on by MaryO

Studies indicate around one out of every two women who suffer a heart attack feel no chest pain. They’re known as silent heart attacks. They’re often misdiagnosed or go untreated making them twice as deadly. Learn more in this video.

Heart Attack Symptoms in Women

Posted on by MaryO

A slideshow of symtoms a woman might have during a heart attack.

Heart Attack Warning Symptoms

Posted on by MaryO

Heart Attack Warning Symptoms speaks to the 7 main symptoms of a heart attack. It uses real women’s stories to personalize the heart attack experience, and encourages women who experience these symptoms to get checked out.

This video is presented by the NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

Heart Disease Risk Factors

Posted on by MaryO

From the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)

Heart Attack Risk Factors address the two types of risk factors associated with heart attacks, factors that a person can control and factors they cannot. Knowing the risk factors is so important because having just one risk factor doubles a person’s chance of developing heart disease.

This video is presented by the NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

 

What Happens During a Heart Attack?

Posted on by MaryO

This video shows what happens to the body when someone has a heart attack.

Know Your Numbers and Life’s Simple 7 Hangout on Air

Posted on by MaryO

February 21 at , 1:30 PM

Do you know your numbers? Keeping track of vital stats like your blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels can save your life. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States with about 600,000 people dying from it every year—that’s one in four deaths.

Moderated by Steve Incontrera from dailyRx, this Google+ Hangout will feature a panel of experts from Baylor Health Care System and the American Heart Association to discuss common myths and misconceptions about heartdisease related to these three statistics.

If heart disease runs in your family, is there really anything you can do about it? Can medication alone reduce your cholesterol ? Are the symptoms for a heart attack the same in men and women?

SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS
Our panel of experts will address these and many more questions during the Hangout discussion. If you have any questions you would like answered, please submit them in the comments area of the original post, or tweet us at #heartchat.

What causes a heart attack?

Posted on by MaryO

Health information explaining what causes a heart attack.

Two Weeks After CABG

Posted on by MaryO

Sounds like a fairy tale of some kind involving veggies like cabbage, lettuce and other greenery.  But it’s not.  CABG is the abbreviation for Coronary artery bypass grafting, something I had no idea about 2 weeks ago.

CABG

DH had 3 of those grafts, the mammary artery and 2 from his leg vein.

From NIH:

Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is a type of surgery that improves blood flow to the heart. Surgeons use CABG to treat people who have severe coronary heart disease (CHD).

CHD is a disease in which a waxy substance called plaque (plak) builds up inside the coronary arteries. These arteries supply oxygen-rich blood to your heart.

Over time, plaque can harden or rupture (break open). Hardened plaque narrows the coronary arteries and reduces the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the heart. This can cause chest pain or discomfort called angina< (an-JI-nuh or AN-juh-nuh).

If the plaque ruptures, a blood clot can form on its surface. A large blood clot can mostly or completely block blood flow through a coronary artery. This is the most common cause of a heart attack. Over time, ruptured plaque also hardens and narrows the coronary arteries.

CABG is one treatment for CHD. During CABG, a healthy artery or vein from the body is connected, or grafted, to the blocked coronary artery. The grafted artery or vein bypasses (that is, goes around) the blocked portion of the coronary artery. This creates a new path for oxygen-rich blood to flow to the heart muscle.

Surgeons can bypass multiple coronary arteries during one surgery.

I have to say it’s amazing how quickly the body can begin to heal after such an assault.  So far, we’ve seen the surgeon’s nurse practitioner and the visiting nurse.  Both say he’s doing very well for such a short amount of time.

There’s still some pain, some coughing, and other inconveniences but it’s amazing what modern medicine can do!