Myocardial infarction is often referred to as the "silent killer." This is because in many cases it shows no symptoms and kills without warning. Many people who are at risk are often unaware that they have coronary artery disease at all, which is what makes it so dangerous. Every year in Poland, tens of thousands of people undergo a heart attack and as many as about 30% of them die.
A recent study offers hope for protection against sudden cardiac death. That's because researchers have identified factors that in people who had a heart attack appeared as much as a month before the cardiovascular incident occurred. Researchers at the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences, whose findings were published in the medical journal Circulation, found that as many as 95 percent of study participants experienced a typical set of symptoms one month before their heart attack. These included sleep disturbances, shortness of breath, stomach problems, and chest pain, among others.
If you are no longer in your 20s, pay attention to any worrisome symptoms in the list below to avoid the worst.
Fatigue is a very common symptom. Unfortunately, given how common it is, it is highly likely that you will not take it seriously - as a signal heralding danger. After all, we can associate fatigue with a hard day at work, an excess of responsibilities, chronic stress. However, if chronic fatigue prevents you from functioning normally, you must not ignore it.
Also, don't jump to conclusions thinking that sudden fatigue always means an impending heart attack. That's not how it works. Take a look at your body. Do you notice that once-simple tasks, such as taking a shower or making the bed, involve a lot of effort for you? Extreme exhaustion or unexplained weakness may indicate asymptomatic chronic heart disease developing, especially in women. These symptoms may persist over a long period of time - if this is the case for you, be sure to contact a specialist.
According to statistics, 50% of patients admitted for a heart attack reported feeling abdominal pain from a month before hospitalization. Nausea with an empty or full stomach, a feeling of bloating or an upset stomach are the most common symptoms that can occur in both men and women. At first these symptoms are associated with gastric reflux or heartburn, but if they occur along with other symptoms, a doctor should be contacted immediately.
It is worth remembering that a squishing pain, located in the upper abdomen or in the area of the right rib arch, accompanied by weakness, nausea is the so-called abdominal mask of a heart attack.
It is extremely dangerous, as the correct diagnosis and implementation of appropriate treatment may occur too late. This type of complaint is often treated by the patient and less experienced doctors as a gastrointestinal complaint. The presence of abdominal symptoms is associated with the direct proximity of the diaphragm to the lower wall of the heart. If you belong to a group of people with risk factors for heart attack, for example, obesity, hypertension, atherosclerosis, it is necessary to see a doctor urgently. Performing an ECG will help differentiate the clinical picture.
Chest pain is a common phenomenon, and symptoms of this type are associated with a heart attack, but are not necessarily life-threatening. Many complaints of chest pain have a harmless cause, but often require diagnosis and drug treatment.
Chest pain or pressure can be caused by many factors - it does not always come from the cardiovascular system. Its cause can be gastrointestinal, respiratory or musculoskeletal trauma. Both the severity and location of chest pain can be very confusing. For example, myocardial infarction pain can be felt in the neck and/or left arm, and pancreatic inflammatory pain (which lies on the left side of the abdomen) is felt by some patients in the right shoulder.
However, chest pain is a symptom characteristic of a heart attack. Interestingly, regardless of gender, it is one of the most common symptoms occurring even a month before a coronary episode. Chest pain or discomfort is caused by a shortage of oxygen in the blood supplied to the heart muscle. Oxygen is essential for the proper functioning of the heart, which is the hardest-working muscle.
Do you have trouble falling asleep or wake up sleep-deprived after a full night's sleep? Insomnia is also believed to be a signal that heralds the risk of a heart attack, which you may experience up to a month in advance. Irregular transport of blood to and from the heart is one of the causes of heart disorders and a constant feeling of restlessness. It is the disruption in oxygen delivery that prevents you from sleeping or regenerating your heart muscle. That's why you wake up feeling tired.
Another symptom to watch out for is persistent snoring. Extremely loud snoring that sounds like wheezing or whooping can be a sign of sleep apnea Obstructive sleep apnea can eventually lead to secondary, refractory hypertension, ischemic heart disease, arrhythmia and conduction disorders, heart failure and stroke.
In case of chronic sleep problems and frequent apneic episodes, polysomnography is necessary. The test allows you to correctly diagnose the disease, determine its severity, and differentiate it from other diseases that may give similar symptoms.
If you suddenly feel tired or out of breath after doing something you've had no problem with in the past - such as climbing stairs or carrying groceries out of the car - make an immediate appointment to see a specialist. Even if it doesn't necessarily mean you're at risk for a heart attack, it could be a sign that your heart is in danger.
The feeling of shortness of breath can be related to respiratory dysfunction, such as the diffusion process in the lungs being disrupted by inflammation. But more than often it is a sign that your heart is not pumping blood as efficiently as it should, due to atherosclerotic lesions.
This type of symptom has been observed in about 40% of heart attack cases, making it an important warning sign that should never be ignored. Shortness of breath combined with constant fatigue is considered one of the most common warning signs a month before a heart attack.
Inadequate or excessive sweating can be an early warning sign of a heart attack. It can occur at any time of the day or night. This symptom affects women more frequently and is usually confused with hot flashes or night sweats typical of menopause.
Excessive sweating is mainly due to elevated pressure due to blockages around the heart or clots in the vascular system. It can be a symptom of heart failure with a hemodynamically significant heart defect, heart inflammation, cardiac arrhythmia or cardiomyopathy. Depending on the degree of heart failure, excessive sweating can occur both during sleep, at rest and after exercise.
It usually coexists with other symptoms of heart failure, such as restlessness, a faint pulse, low blood pressure, marbled skin coloration, pallor of the skin, cool extremities, shortness of breath, cough, excessive pulsation of the precordial region, deaf heart tones, arrhythmia and scanty heart. Symptoms suggestive of left ventricular failure include left ventricular enlargement, coughing, retraction of the intercostal spaces and crackles over the lung fields. Resting dyspnea decreases in the sitting position and increases in lying down.
Some patients have paroxysmal nocturnal and/or exertional dyspnea. Symptoms suggestive of right ventricular failure include right ventricular enlargement, liver and spleen enlargement, peripheral edema, transudates into body cavities, and jugular venous dilatation.
If you notice that your sweating is accompanied by shortness of breath and constant discomfort in the chest area, contact a specialist. This is because there is a high risk that you may soon experience a heart attack.
Hair loss, especially on the top of the head, is one of the little-known early symptoms signaling the risk of a heart attack. It appears most often in men over the age of 50, and less frequently affects women as well. One possible cause of hair loss is high levels of cortisol in the body. High levels of stress contribute to higher cortisol levels, which have been found to impede heart function while contributing to an increased risk of heart attack.
Heart palpitations can be caused by something completely trivial like consuming too much caffeine or another product that causes inflammation. Also, insufficient sleep or inflammation caused by an infection can cause heart rhythm disturbances.
However, in rare cases, it can be a symptom of atrial fibrillation, a condition that requires urgent treatment. Similarly, palpitations can occur in the course of coronary artery disease, when hypoxia and ischemia occur. If the ischemia occurs several weeks before the heart attack, one of its symptoms may be the arrhythmia.
Do not wait to consult a cardiologist if you experience palpitations. If the condition persists, you must intervene and go to a doctor to check the origin of the symptoms.
Myocardial infarction is a condition that kills millions of middle-aged people around the world every year. It is very important to minimize the risk of heart attack by implementing appropriate preventive measures.
A sedentary lifestyle is standard for most of us. We sit at work, in the car, on the train, on the airplane, at the movies or in front of the TV. If you tend to lead a sedentary lifestyle, you are most likely actively contributing to your risk of heart attack.
Just 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week lowers the risk of ischemic heart disease by 15% and extends life expectancy by 4.5 years. Studies show that properly selected physical activity will benefit the cardiovascular system. Just 15 minutes of exercise a day - walking or exercising - is enough to reap significant health benefits.
If you want to reduce the risk of a heart attack, make sure you are regularly active, tailored to your body.
The condition of your blood vessels and heart does not depend on your doctor and the medications you take, but primarily on how you eat. Pay attention not only to what's on your plate, but especially to what your body assimilates. The health of your heart and entire cardiovascular system depends on the state of your digestive tract
Many people ask themselves: which diet to choose? There are a lot of conflicting reports on this topic, because every person is different. Our experience and a growing number of studies indicate that personalized diets, such as the Metabolic Diet or the Phenotype Diet, tailored to the unique phenotype of patients, have proven to be a superior version of the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet, which American cardiologists have found to be the healthiest.
This personalized approach is also proving more beneficial than the Mediterranean diet, which is considered very healthy, or the ketogenic diet, which is so fashionable. The basis for the development of this type of diet is the Metabolic Code 200 study. The development of a diet based on an innovative study directed at removing chronic inflammation is the best form of prevention, but also treatment, or support for the treatment of cardiovascular disease.
Lifestyle, residents of developed countries have caused, stress has become an integral part of our existence. It is becoming increasingly difficult for us to avoid stressful situations, and increasingly difficult to manage this stress. If you often struggle with stress, you must expect increased cardiovascular risk.
Stress increases cortisol levels in the blood. Cortisol has properties that constrict blood vessels, thereby increasing blood pressure, contributing to an increased risk of heart attack.
However, there are ways to better cope with stress. These include meditation, prayer, or listening to relaxing classical jazz or folk music. Instruments that will help you de-stress include the flute, piano and violin.
Also see if sounds of nature like the sound of waves or birds singing help you. You can find such recordings on the Internet. A relaxing bath is another easy home method for relaxation. Use bath salt and plant oils such as lavender or lemon balm. It's also a good idea to treat yourself to a stress-relieving massage from time to time. Dimmed light and the smell of essential oils will help you relax and overcome stress.
How often does it happen that a visit to a specialist is postponed until the condition does not allow you to function normally. After all, we all know that prevention is better than cure! Remember, regular check-ups are important and necessary if you want to go through life without serious incidents.
If you're already concerned about your health or want the best preventive action, contact a functional medicine specialist. This is a new holistic approach directed at reducing chronic inflammation. Such a specialist will help you choose the optimal way to regenerate your body and point out ways of proceeding to protect you from the risk of a heart attack.
Therapy to eliminate chronic inflammation is not only a preventive measure, but also a treatment for already existing changes such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, heart failure, of which you may not yet be aware. The more risk factors you eliminate, the better your chances of maintaining a healthy heart for years to come and avoiding sudden and dangerous incidents in your life and that of your family members.
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