A casual outing on a weekend turned near fatal for this 25-year-old who suffered a sudden cardiac arrest in a busy shopping arcade. While for another 24-year-old it was a fun day out and a relaxing swim in a pool when his heart suddenly stopped functioning. These are not isolated cases, as doctors in the city say that cardiac diseases are no longer age specific as more and more cases are being seen of a sudden attack in young working professionals with no prior symptom or warning.
“With the advent of MNC work culture here, increased work pressure and need for performance in the workplace has led to incidence of stress level in the executive lifestyles. This type of a lifestyle increases the risk of developing heart disease by 10-15 times,” said Dr. Ravindra L. Kulkarni, consultant cardiologist. He said that today’s working environment is such that individuals feel the time crunch, which prevents them from a routine work out schedule. “Modern life style has proven to be the stimulus for the growth of heart diseases among the youth. Improper food habits, lack of physical activity, high level of stress and increase in smoking and alcohol consumption are all classic risk factors which can put one high on the risk zone of coronary heart diseases,” he added.
While youth is the driving force of Indian economy, it is the high prevalence of heart ailments among Young India which is now a cause for concern. “Sudden Cardiac Deaths have a direct relation with stress as this comes with increased adrenaline surge and those who are not attuned to handling this sudden increased adrenaline surge become victims of Sudden Cardiac Death, as the heart then stops functioning,” said Dr Srikanth Raghavan, Pediatric Cardiologist, BGS Global Hospitals. He explained while stress has a direct link to sudden cardiac deaths, there are a bunch of other diseases of which the first symptom is sudden cardiac death. “Early and routine screening is the only option to identify such problems and prevent sudden cardiac deaths. In fact this is also to a certain extent genetic because of which we always advise that those who have a history in the family of people dropping dead suddenly should go in for routine screening,” added the doctor. But the incidence of these cases can directly be attributed to increased stress levels.
This explains the reason for the theme of this year’s World Heart Day chosen as ‘Corporate Wellness’. Doctors insist that it is essential for companies and organizations to invest in the physical and mental well-being of its employees for their own benefit because ultimately Companies must realize that an unhealthy employee is a liability rather than an asset to the company.
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Guest column
Dr Devi Prasad Shetty, eminent cardiologist and founder of Narayana Hrudayalaya
Indian’s are genetically three times more vulnerable for heart attack then European’s. Average age of my patients in England was 65-years while in India it is 45-years. It is not the young son bringing his old father for heart operation in India it is the old father brining his young son for the bypass.
We are genetically three times more vulnerable for heart attack than Europeans. We have a very high incidence of diabetics and that is one of the reasons why we develop heart attack at the young age.
For preventing sudden heart attack my recommendation is any one leading a stressful life must have a 64 slice CT scan at the age of 30 to detect early blockages in the coronary arteries. In good old days only way to know you have coronary artery disease is by doing an angiogram. Today technology allows us to detect heart attack 10 years in advance. People who have a family history of heart attack at the young age and who are diabetic, hypertensive, hyperthyroid must go for a 64 CT scan at least once in three to five years. This will detect early blockages in patients. If the blockage are found, then based on the extent of it we can advice further treatment. The most dreadful thing about heart attack is that large number of heart attack and ischemic heart disease is silent in nature called silent ischemia. You can have a major heart attack without you being aware of it. This is the worst thing about heart attack, especially in diabetics. Diabetics do not have sensation in the heart and they carry on as if there is no problem and on one fine day dropdown dead.
Only way to know this problem happening in advance is by going in for 64 slice CT scan which only takes 5 seconds and it is an out patient test and totally painless.
The writer is a renowned cardiologist and is Chairman, Narayana Hrudayalaya
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In box:
Solutions for a healthy heart:
Take time off during lunch break to get some fresh air
Try exercising or stretching for five minutes twice a day
Walk everyday with an aim of covering 5 km in 45 minutes
Getting into a yoga or meditation works as good stress buster
Eat fresh and dried fruits and vegetables in abundance
Keep a regular check on your weight
Restrict intake of carbohydrates
Cut down on salt, caffeine and alcohol consumption
Reduce cholesterol level by consuming low fat dairy, egg yolk three to four times per week
BP should ideally be at 115/75
HDL (good cholesterol) level should be around 50mg/dL
Get into a habit of routine health checkups, especially those with a family history of cardiac ailments
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3 quotes:
Dr. Ravindra L. Kulkarni, consultant cardiologist:
Small changes, such as ban on smoking, making more fruit and vegetables available at canteens, and encouraging workers to incorporate physical activity into their daily routine, can make a big difference in terms of better health. Further, employers must ensure their workplaces are 100 per cent smoke-free and support the adoption of smoking cessation services and provide help to employees who wish to quit tobacco.
Dr Shashidhar, consultant cardiologist and electrophysiologist, Fortis hospital:
Asians in general and Indians in particular are genetically predisposed to cardiac ailments. So it is said that the genes loads the gun and environment pulls the trigger, which could be anything like smoking, obesity. That is the reason why we see many of these young guys, who have a normal heart sudden drop dead.
Dr. A.G.Ravikishore, part of the Indian Society of Electro-cardiology:
Atrial Fibrillation, is a condition that causes irregular or abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia) and has serious consequences if left untreated. It can affect a patient’s daily life and lead to long-term problems, including cardiovascular hospitalisation and greater risk of heart attack, stroke and even death. This at times does not have any symptom and people can die on the spot, so regular screening is essential to prevent this problem.
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