Heart Attack - First Aid and Emergency Treatment Guide
What is Heart attack?
- Occurs when blood supply to vital organs gets blocked
- >50years / menopausal women at greater risk
- Occurs with / without chest pain
- Sudden arrest of breathing / heart function
- May result in cardiopulmonary arrest
- Clot in the arteries blocks blood supply
- Occurs due to:
- Deposits of calcium / cholesterol
- Hereditary factors
- Tobacco
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Emotional stress
- Inflammatory disease of arteries
- Trauma / disease of heart
Symptoms of Heart Attack
- Chest pain
- Shoulder/arm pain
- Shortness of breath
- Sweating
- Heartburn
- Nausea
- Abdominal pain
First aid
- Try to relax
- Loosen tight clothes
- Take medicine, if any have been prescribed
- Pain subsides within 3 min of medicine intake
- If not, see a doctor.
- Give artifical respiration if required
- Give Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) :
- If no pulse is detected
- By placing palm on chest to pump
- 15 pumps are followed by 2 artificial respiration
- Continue till ambulance / doctor arrives
Heart Attack Prevention
- Routine health check-up
- Avoid stress
- Quit smoking / alcohol
- Eat sensibly
- Control blood pressure / diabetes
- Control weight