It’s crucial to comprehend the idea of a heart attack and the symptoms of cardiac arrest. People frequently mix up a heart attack with a cardiac arrest, although they are not the same thing. Heart diseases need an in-depth understanding of tiny anomalies that have similarities but arise from different causes. Heart attacks and cardiac arrests are medical conditions with diverse etiologies and treatment options.
According to Dr. Sanjay Bhat, senior consultant in interventional cardiology at a hospital in Bangalore, heart attacks are caused by circulation problems, such as when the heart’s blood supply is cut off. However, because cardiac arrest is an electrical system defect brought on by an irregular heartbeat, it is more serious.
The specialist tells us all we need to know about these illnesses on the eve of World Heart Day.
How do you distinguish?
Heart Attack
Since the heart is a muscle, it needs blood that is rich in oxygen to function. The coronary arteries are responsible for providing the heart with oxygen. Therefore, a heart attack occurs when clogged arteries prevent oxygen-rich blood from reaching certain areas of the heart. Some heart muscle tissue may start to deteriorate if such a blockage is not quickly removed.
The longer a person goes without treatment, the more serious the damage gets because if a blocked artery is not rapidly unblocked, it results in the death of the portion of the heart that is regularly supplied by it. Therefore, to remove the blockage and restore blood flow, surgery must be done as soon as a heart attack happens.
Despite the possibility of the quick onset of heart attack symptoms, this is not always the case. It can manifest differently in various sexes and occasionally even in the same person. The majority of the time, symptoms develop gradually and last for hours, days, or even weeks before a heart attack actually happens.
Some of the typical signs of a heart attack include:
- Chest discomfort may persist for many minutes despite resting.
- pain in the chest that spreads to other body areas, most often the arms, jaw, neck, back, and belly
- Smokers and those who consume unhealthy foods
- breathing problems
- Coughing
- Wheezing
- a feeling of faintness or dizziness
Heart arrest
Someone’s heart stops beating normally when they experience cardiac arrest. Essentially, a disruption in the blood flow to the heart causes the heart’s pumping action to cease or “arrest.” cardiac arrest is thus an “electrical” issue.
Cardiac arrest frequently happens abruptly and without warning. However, cardiac arrest is frequently brought on by a heart attack. It may be brought on by an irregular heartbeat or an arrhythmia brought on by a cardiac electrical problem. Due to the heart’s diminished capacity to pump blood to the brain, lungs, and other organs, the person loses consciousness and is without a pulse.
If the right actions are not done right away after a cardiac arrest, the person might die. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can stop cardiac arrest, and a defibrillator can shock the heart back to a normal rhythm in a matter of minutes.
The irregular heartbeats known as arrhythmias can also cause the heart to beat too rapidly or too slowly. Chest discomfort, shortness of breath, nausea, or vomiting, as well as a racing heartbeat or feeling faint or lightheaded, may occur before a sudden cardiac arrest.
Common causes of cardiac arrest and heart attacks
- Cholesterol buildup
- obstruction in look vessels
- Blood clot development
- harm to the heart muscle
- an electrical issue
- unusual blood flow
A diet high in fat raises the risk of heart disease and causes artery hardening (atherosclerosis). To maintain a healthy heart, it is advised to eat a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and seafood.
In the present era of imbalanced nutrition-rich diets, maintaining heart health is essential. Indians are more prone to get heart attack or cardiac arrest due to their poor, inactive lifestyles.
You may establish your healthy weight based on height using the BMI healthy weight calculator.
