With recent lifestyle changes, more and more people, younger in age, are falling prey to heart attacks. While some silently suffer the attack during their sleep and never wake up, others have symptoms which they dismiss as acidity or muscular pain and ignore them. There are multiple media programs that are trying to create awareness about how to identify a heart attack. If done at the right time, there is a good chance that the person can be saved.

What is a Heart Attack?

The blood vessels gradually narrow, reducing the blood flow to the target organs. This reduces the efficiency of the target organ, and if this happens to be the heart, it is known as a heart attack. The area that should ideally receive blood does not, leading to its  death.  If the damage is not severe, it can be reversed. However, if this attack happens in one of the critical areas of the heart, it can even be fatal.

Symptoms To Watch For: Very few attacks happen suddenly. Most start slowly and progress, and if identified on time, a life can be saved. The episode takes about an hour, and if you are well-versed with the symptoms, it could help identify the condition correctly and save a life. Most people use antacids and muscle relaxants to ease the situation, which does provide immediate relief, but not a proper cure.

There is a central pain which is constant, nagging, and has a squeezing like sensation. This causes discomfort and most often, this pain is in the center of the chest area, which lasts for just a few minutes. Sometimes the pain can go and come back. This pain radiates down into the arm, up into the neck area, and also into the jaw and is almost always indicative of a heart attack.

With chest pain, there is always shortness of breath which the person will experience. This is due to reduced oxygen levels in the body.

Associated symptoms include fatigue, exhaustion, nausea, dizziness, light-headedness.

There is almost always profused sweating where the person breaks into a cold sweat.

If the attack happens during sleep, the person may be snoring and may feel, as if something is choking his airway.

Due to reduced return of blood from the peripheral organs, there could be swelling of the feet and ankles.

If there is irregular heart beat (palpitations) very often, talk to your doctor about it.

When you suspect a person of having a heart attack, check for these signs. Very often, a heart attack is detectable and can be managed with timely intervention.

Signs Of A Heart Attack

Foods that cleanse the arteries naturally
 
Arteries are the blood vessels that carry oxygen to various parts of the body. Proper functioning of the arteries is directly related to well functioning organs as without oxygen, no organ can work well. There are many reasons due to which blockages and waste materials are stuck in these blood vessels. It is essential to clean them on regular basis, there are several food items available easily that cleanse the arteries naturally!

1. Tea- green tea is known popularly as an antioxidant that keeps your health and weight in check. But it is also a very strong cleanser of your arteries as well. Black tea too, one that has flavonoids in good proportions is also considered as an excellent cleanser of the artery.
2. Sesame seeds- sesame seeds have natural cardioprotective substances that are not only good for the artery but are very beneficial for absolute heart health. Sesame is majorly known for preventing the occurrence of atherosclerosis. Apart from that, sesame helps in cleaning all blood vessels.
3. Turmeric- any blockage or damage to the artery is immediately addressed by the turmeric that we consume regularly. It cures the damages almost immediately, preventing any aggravation or infection. Including turmeric in good proportions in daily diet is considered as a complete option to tackle any problems to the arteries.
4. Fruits- fruits are extremely beneficial both for the cardiovascular and blood health. Fibrous fruits especially are related to the arteries. Researchers suggest that having fibrous fruits first up in the morning, on an empty stomach ensures that all the arteries are cleaned and its functions are proceeding in the right manner.
5. Olive oil- fatty acids like omega-3 and omega-6 present in olive oil are excellent plaque removers. Consuming olive oil increases the omega substances in the body, so when something is about to harm the artery, they intervene and cleanse it completely.


Foods That Cleanse The Arteries Naturally

Symptoms of heart attack

A heart attack (myocardial infarction) should not be confused with stroke or heart failure. It is the condition which causes major damage to heart muscles because of sudden blockage by a blood clot. The most common symptom of heart attack happens to be chest pain. Heart failure and ventricular fibrillation are probably the most common complications in this condition. 

Clear symptoms of heart attack are:

1. Feeling vaguely ill - very vague feeling of illness is one symptom. You cannot really put your finger on what is wrong with you, but you do feel unwell.

2. Pain in left arm - pain in the arm, mainly the left arm is also one of the symptoms of an impending heart attack.

3. Sweating and heartburn - a lot of people have reported experiencing sweating, indigestion and heartburn before a heart attack. If you are sweating profusely and without any particular reasons, or having an unbearable heartburn, consult a medical specialist immediately.

4. Chest pain - feeling of fullness or tightness in the chest followed by pain is also a symptom of a heart attack. A lot of people have reported to ignore it; kindly don't.

5. Breathlessness - sudden shortness of breath and inability to do a lot of work at one point of time is not a good thing. This could be an indication of a heart attack.

6. Silent attack - the scariest of all is silent heart attack. At times, it comes with no symptoms at all. A person could be visibly physically fit, and suddenly have an attack. This usually happens with those who are suffering from diabetes mellitus.

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All You Need To Know About Heart Attack Symptoms

Heart attack, also known as myocardial infarction, is a severe condition where death of the heart muscle occurs because of the loss of blood supply. The blood loss usually happens because of the blockage of a coronary artery. Due to electrical instability, ventricular fibrillation is caused. Heart attacks may result in permanent brain damage or even death.

Symptoms of heart attack
There are many early symptoms and signs of heart attack, which should be recognized. Symptoms of heart attack vary from person to person. Here is a list of the primary heart attack symptoms:

Chest pain and discomfort:
Chest pain is the basic symptom of a heart attack and occurs in different forms. The chest pain has a pressure, fullness and squeezing sensation and starts from the center of the chest. The pain may go away and re-occur and may spread down to other limbs of the body.
Headache, toothache:
The chest pain occurring due to a heart attack spreads all over the body and the jaw. Even the back and head are affected. Sometimes pain in these regions is present while chest pain is absent.
Shortness of breath:
A gasping sensation or feeling shortness of breath is another common sign of a heart attack. Such breathing difficulty is called dyspnea. The shortness of breath occurs before or during the chest pain.
Nausea and vomiting:
The feeling of nausea or sickness in the stomach is another possible symptom. It is accompanied by belching or burping and sometimes, the heart attack is associated with a feeling of indigestion. Nausea is more common in women. Vomiting also occurs alongside nausea.
General epigastric discomfort:
In several cases, patients describe the pain of a heart attack as stomach pain. The pain is heavy and uncomfortable and persists for several minutes.
Sweating:
Perspiration or sweating occurs during a heart attack and the patient experiences cold sweat in avid amounts.

Emergency treatment for heart attack-
A person who has a heart attack should be rushed to a hospital.
Several tests are carried out to detect the cause of the attack. A 12 lead ekg is carried out to supervise electrical activity within the heart and detect the damaged areas.
Blood tests are undertaken to check enzymes and in certain cases, cardiac catheterization is required where pictures of the blood vessels are examined.
Emergency medicines are given to the patient to stop the formation of blood clots and include aspirin, heparin and other drugs. Other medicines are given for thrombolytic therapy, which dissolve already formed blood clots. They work to reduce the heart damage. Nitrates are also used.

A heart attack is a severe condition and must be attended to immediately. Emergency treatment procedures are essential to save the life of an affected person.

Heart Attack - Signs, Symptoms and Emergency Treatment

How many of us have heard about Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) before Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister late J Jayalalithaa was put on it for recovery? Hardly a handful. Patients who are placed on the device have 50-50 chance of survival and while it could not help the late Chief Minister, her condition put a spotlight on ECMO.

What is ECMO?
ECMO is a life support device that is put in place when a patient's heart and lungs stop functioning completely post a cardiac arrest. When the patient does not respond to Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), the patient is put on ECMO.

Function of ECMO
The core function of the device is to separate carbon dioxide from the blood and add oxygen into it. It takes the load off from heart and lungs, providing critical time to the body organs for its treatment and recovery.
Patients are only put on ECMO, if there is a chance that the condition can be reversed.

How does ECMO work?
The device drains blood from a vein, which is attached to an oxygenator machine. The machine then removes carbon dioxide from the blood and adds oxygen to it. Depending upon the condition of the patient, the warm blood is either pumped into the body with the help of the machine or is transferred back into the body through an artery.

How long a patient can be on ECMO?
After seven days of being put on ECMO,there are chances of patient getting an infection.
In case the patient contracts an infection, it is recommended to take the patient off ECMO support.

All About ECMO - Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation 

Our survival is solely reliant on the working of the heart. It is this that makes the prospect of a heart failure so fatal and so terrifying. Notwithstanding what the heart evokes, a heart failure is not indicative of a defunct heart; but only a situation when the heart pumps weaker than what is generally deemed as natural. Consequently, the blood flows at a slower rate to the heart and the body that in turn increases pressure in the heart. The oxygen that is produced by the heart in such a scenario is scanty and insufficient for the body. 

body responds with its own defense mechanism, as the heart, in an attempt to hold more blood, stretches its chambers. Though this strenuous effort may keep the blood moving, it would gradually and inevitably weary the heart with all the effort. Subsequently, the kidney responds by retaining more salt and fluid in the body. These fluids may accumulate in different parts of the body, mainly in the legs, feet, ankles leading to congestion in the body. This very condition in medical terminology is referred to as congestive heart failure. 

Different causes can contribute to the onset of such a fatal condition. Some of them are

Coronary artery disease: In such a condition, the arteries supply insufficient amount of oxygen and blood to the heart. Subsequently, the heart receives scanty amount of nutrients and oxygen.
Heart attack: The sudden, unanticipated blockage of the coronary artery and the ensuing stoppage of the flow of the blood lead to a heart attack. The heart muscles are damaged in such a case and prevent the proper functioning.
Diseases: Though the term may be generic and over expansive, most of the ailments which people suffer from tend to manifest themselves by posing a potential threat to the functioning of the heart. A high blood pressure, kidney disease, even a thyroid disease can cause congestive heart failure.
Every disorder is preceded by certain symptoms, and congestive heart failure is no different. Some of them are

Fatigue: This is one of the most perceptible symptoms of congestive heart failure. One of the earliest premonitions of an impending heart failure is a nagging sense of weariness and lethargy.
Swelling: As the condition is characterized by accumulation and build-up of fluids in various part of the body, swelling is an inevitable symptom of this condition and a clear indication of the ailment.

Congestive Heart Failure - Factors that Make it Fatal

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