A new study by Ohio State University researchers has shown that patients who complain of anxiety after a heart attack are not being managed
A new study by Ohio State University researchers has shown that patients who complain of anxiety after a heart attack are not being managed appropriately. The researchers who looked at an experience of 101 heart attack victims have found that patients' own descriptions of anxiety after a heart attack and the way it is recorded and treated by their doctors do not match. In the group of participants it was found that anxiety levels varied from none to severe. Researchers found that almost half of those who said they were extremely anxious and more than half// who said that they were mildly anxious had not had any previous clinical assessment of anxiety. It was also fond that though three quarters of the participants had received treatment for anxiety, only half the cases had had a prior clinical assessment. Also, follow-ups to these treatments was found to be very rare. Anxiety, according to the researchers is common and inevitable after following a heart attack and if left untreated it may impair patients' recovery. The researchers have now developed an easy-to-administer tool that will assess patient's level of anxiety and help doctors treat them accordingly.
