Recognizing and Responding to the Silent Killer: Heart Attacks Globally
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Heart disease is the single greatest cause of death in most countries. According to the WHO, CVDs account for around 17.9 million deaths every year, which is 32% of all deaths worldwide. Of these deaths, 85% are due to heart attacks and strokes. In fact, even though there is much advancement in medical care, people do not know what to look out for when experiencing a heart attack, and most deaths occur before a person can be medically treated.
Heart attacks, also known as myocardial infarctions, are happening to individuals worldwide across all geographical, social, and economic boundaries. Heart attacks remain a major health burden in both high-income and low-to-middle-income countries. A good understanding of the causative factors, recognition of the warning signs, and prompt response would drastically reduce the mortality caused by this silent killer.
What happens in a Heart Attack?
A heart attack occurs because of interference between oxygen-rich blood reaching a portion of the heart’s muscle, usually caused by a buildup of fat, cholesterol, or other substances known as plaque. After the plaque ruptures, a blood clot forms around it, blocking the artery. These deprived sections of the heart muscle start dying since they are not receiving any flow of blood.
If the flow of blood is not returned in time, the heart muscle will be damaged permanently, hence less able to pump blood. However, timely treatment can restore blood flow and avoid permanent damage to the body. The secret lies in being aware of the signs and seeking a doctor’s help immediately.
Recognizing the Signs of a Heart Attack
Heart attack symptoms are somewhat the same across the globe. The most common presentation is chest discomfort form of uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain in the center of the chest. Sometimes the discomfort lasts for several minutes, and other times it comes and goes at intervals.
Yet, while chest pain is a presenting feature for almost everyone, it is not always the first sign nor is it the most apparent in women, the elderly, or anyone suffering from diabetes as well as other serious medical conditions.
Other classic symptoms are:
- Pain or discomfort in other areas of the body: Many patients report discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw, or stomach.
- Breathlessness: This may occur with or without chest discomfort.
- Other symptoms: Cold sweats, nausea, dizziness, or light-headedness are common signs of a heart attack; however, they often mimic less serious conditions, such as indigestion
Most people in some regions would ignore these warning signs due to stress, fatigue, or indigestion. The delayed responses are dominant in low-income and low-density populations, where services may be scarce and less knowledge about heart attack symptoms exists in the population.
Differential symptoms among gender, age, and health status
Heart attack symptoms differ between genders, age groups, and well/underprivileged health status. For instance, heart attack symptoms tend to vary in different genders, age groups, and well/underprivileged health status.
- Women: Women typically experience less intense chest pains, and more often, they have atypical symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, and back or jaw ache. This enables them to reduce or even forget the symptoms and, therefore, lifesaving treatment may be delayed in coming.
- Elderly: Heart attacks may not be revealed in older adults as a drama and may appear to lack energy or weakness, shortness of breath, or fainting. These are claimed symptoms of being old, yet could be symptoms of an attack on the heart.
- People with diabetes: If a person has diabetes, their heart attacks tend to be silent-heart attacks that do not exhibit symptoms or have symptoms that are either absent or minimal. The pain could be masked by nerve damage due to diabetes.
Understanding these differences helps people know when they or someone else is having a heart attack regardless of the location.
The Urgency of Prompt Response
No matter where you are, time is life when it comes to a heart attack. A moment is all between the start of a heart attack and receiving medical attention. The longer a patient waits, the more damage is done to heart tissue and the greater the risks of complications, such as heart failure or even death. Of course, this would not be possible without ignorance and unawareness in most countries regarding symptoms or rather the severity of the situation.
About half of deaths due to heart attacks occur worldwide within the first hour that symptoms begin and before coming to the hospital. This proportion is even higher in more remote settings. Patients often delay coming forward for a variety of reasons, such as denial, regardless of the quality of available healthcare.
Once symptoms develop, the first order of business is clear: Don’t wait a minute. Call for emergency medical services in your area. Where access to emergency medical services is limited, having a plan in place for getting to the nearest healthcare facility as quickly as possible is essential.
What to Do if You Think You Are Having a Heart Attack or Someone Else Is
If you think you or someone else is having a heart attack, take these steps:
- Call Emergency Services Now: If you have the emergency number available in your country, then call. If EMS is not available, organize for prompt transfer to the nearest hospital.
- Chew an Aspirin: If you can lay your hands on an aspirin tablet of 300 mg strength then chew it. It is said that chewing an aspirin helps in breaking the blood clot and enhancing the flow of blood towards the heart.
- Remain Calm and Rest: As calmly as you can wait for assistance, stay calm. Loosen tight clothing if possible and lie down.
In areas of limited availability to immediate emergency medical attention, a heart attack patient may have to rely on a community health worker, local clinic, or transportation service for assistance. In some areas, it may be hours before one can reach a hospital increasing the likelihood of permanent damage to the heart and even death.
Understand the Global Burden of Heart Disease
The burden of heart disease, including heart attacks, is staggering and quite scary when looked at globally. Despite the fall in related deaths due to better healthcare infrastructures within high-income countries and improving public awareness in combination with medical care, these conditions are rising in low- and middle-income countries. According to the WHO, more than 75% of cardiovascular deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. These include scarce accessibility to healthcare facilities, high intake of unhealthy foods, higher rates of smoking tobacco, and low awareness about heart health.
Prevention of Heart Attacks Around the World
Prevention of heart attack is an important health concern all over the globe. The best way through which a heart attack might be prevented is by reducing the potential risk factors leading to heart disease:
- Quit smoking. Tobacco use is a major cause of cardiovascular disease. Most health benefits of quitting smoking can be gained in just a few days, and quitting at any age can add years to life.
- Eat wisely. A diet low in salt, fat, and sugar, and high in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, can help prevent heart attacks and strokes. Around the globe, efforts like the WHO’s Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases promote better diets and lifestyles.
- Exercise Regularly: Exercise conditions the heart and enhances blood circulation. At least, WHO has recommended 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week in adults.
- Monitor Blood Pressure and Cholesterol: Blood pressure and cholesterol levels should regularly be monitored and attended in order to avoid heart diseases. In fact, in many countries, public health departments organize different campaigns for getting routine check-ups.
- Limit Alcohol: Alcohol misuse may elevate blood pressure levels and thereby increase the susceptibility to heart diseases.
Reduce Healthcare Disparities
There are stark contrasts around the world in the availability of care. For instance, in most developed countries, the health system is so advanced that it has become possible to treat heart attacks pretty speedily with angioplasty, bypass surgery, or clot-busting drugs. The treatment is much less frequently available in low- and middle-income countries. Global and local public health interventions are striving to bridge some of these disparities by enlarging the care infrastructure and providing more education about prevention and the treatment of cardiovascular disease.
Global Epidemic
Heart attack is a universal health problem transcending regional boundaries. Whether it is a high-income country with state-of-the-art healthcare or a rural village where the health services are virtually minimal, awareness of heart attack symptoms and quick reactions can be a rescue package.
Educating the public on what warning signs to look for and the urgency to act swiftly would best address the global burden that comes with heart attacks. The message is basically always the same, whether you are in any part of the world: if you think you are having a heart attack, call for medical attention immediately-time is muscle.
