what are the signs and how to avoid it

Infarction: all you need to know to protect yourself from the disease that is the leading cause of death in the world.

Are you afraid of having a heart attack? Cardiovascular disease has long been the leading cause of death in the world. Prevention plays a crucial role in reducing the incidence and mortality of these diseases. In fact, many efforts are being made in this direction worldwide by the various cardiology societies (eg, the American Heart Association). Despite the progress made, particularly with regard to the new therapeutic weapons available to us (for example, the new techniques of percutaneous angioplasty), we are far from controlling cardiovascular disease. Heart attacks are therefore a major problem at the sociocultural level and have a major impact on mbad culture. It is important to be informed aboutthenfarto: what are the signs and how to prevent it?. In this article, I will try to clarify your doubts.

What is a heart attack?

The infarction is defined as the injury of an organ due to the interruption of normal blood flow (ischemia). In particular, what we will discuss in this article is themyocardial infarction (heart) which is the most widespread. Myocardial infarction is the death of certain cardiac cells because of the sudden interruption of the blood flow that supports them.

What are the causes?

The heart is sprayed by coronary arteries. As a result, to produce the infarct, there must be an occlusion of these arteries capable of determining ischemia. The most common causes of coronary artery occlusion are thrombosis, embolism and vasospasm.

• the thrombosis it is the most common cause of heart attack. It consists of the formation of a clot in a coronary artery preventing normal blood flow from causing ischemia. Thrombosis usually forms from plaques of atherosclerosis, quinides representing a very important risk factor for the development of a heart attack;
• L & # 39;embolism it's a less common cause. It consists of the presence of a coagulum in the coronary artery but differs from the thrombus because it formed in another place and then was moved into the coronary artery. However, the effects are identical to those of thrombosis and the infarction that you are going to have is of the same type;
• the vasospasm it is rare. This is the abrupt contraction of the coronary artery wall that prevents blood from flowing. Vasospasm can often be due to the use of heavy drugs such as cocaine.

Whatever the cause of the occlusion, the cause of the heart attack is a difference between supply and demand oxygen: the heart needs a certain amount of oxygen to function and remain vital (demand) and this quantity of oxygen is normally carried by the blood (reserve).

What are the risk factors?

the risk factors Infarction and in general cardiovascular diseases are numerous:

• Age: Older age is a risk factor for women cardiovascular illnesses. Studies show a particularly high incidence of heart attack, especially after 65 years. Females tend to develop infarction later and, during their fertile age, are better protected, probably because of the function of certain hormones;
• bad: men have more risk of developing a heart attack. However, women with myocardial infarction usually have higher mortality because of causes that are not yet fully defined;
• hypertension: high blood pressure is one of the most important risk factors and must be controlled. It is capable of causing a heart attack because it tends to damage the coronary artery wall (by promoting thrombosis) and promotes the formation of atherosclerotic plaques underlying most infarcts.
• diabetes: diabetes mellitus is a disease characterized by the presence of high amounts of glucose in the blood. In the long term, these high blood sugar levels result in increased procoagulant activity and dysfunction of the artery walls that promote thrombosis and atherosclerosis. It is precisely for this reason that heart attack is the leading cause of death in diabetic patients.
• obesity: the excessive amount of body fat contributes to the onset of infarction, as it promotes the development of diabetes and causes the presence of a general inflammatory state which damages the coronary arteries;
• smoke: cigarette smoke is an enemy not only for the lungs but also for the heart. It is a cause of accelerated atherosclerosis, inflammation and hypertension;
• cholesterol: High cholesterol (high blood cholesterol) is one of the most important risk factors because of the formation of atherosclerotic plaques, precisely because cholesterol is deposited in the artery walls and causes occlusion slow;
• Atherosclerosis: consists of the formation of true plaques in the wall of the arteries. Over time, these plaques tend to grow inward, slowly obstructing the artery. So you can slowly get to the closure of the artery, but the main danger is due to the possible sudden occlusion of the artery: a plaque, especially in people with hypertension, can get break up and trigger a thrombosis that suddenly closes. the coronary artery causing a heart attack;
• diet: a diet rich in animal fats is a cardiovascular risk factor;
• other risk factors: these are usually less common factors like i genetic factorshyperhomocysteinemia and hypercoagulability.

Signs and symptoms

Recognizing the symptoms of infarction as soon as they occur is of paramount importance to arrive as quickly as possible to the hospital and maximize your chance of survival.

I will try to explain the signs to which you should pay particular attention.

• chest pain: it is the most important symptom. It is a retrosternal pain (in the middle of the thorax) that can be of variable nature, but most of the time, we talk about gravitational or oppressive pain ("Like a stone pressing on the chest"). Often, this pain is not limited to the chest, but also tends to radiate to the neck, jaw, back, left arm or, in some cases, the right arm. In women, the pain may occur in a slightly different place, that is, it may be in the form of epigastric pain ("in the pit of the stomach") which may in some cases case be underestimated or not recognized for this reason. Another special case is that of diabetics because they are subjects who can have a heart attack in progress without feeling pain (silent myocardial infarction) because of the degeneration of the nerves due to diabetes itself;
• dyspnea: there is a more or less marked difficulty of breathing which can be directly due to the dysfunction of the heart caused by the infarction or to the state of anxiety created in the subject with the infarction in course;
• cold sweating: this is a symptom that often manifests itself and indicates an imbalance of the autonomic nervous system that may occur in the infarct;
• nausea / vomiting: symptoms may be caused by particularly intense pain or by hyperactivation of the autonomic nervous system;
• Hypotension / Hypertension: These are caused by the imbalance of the autonomic nervous system, but hypotension is more often caused by a dysfunction of the heart. If the hypotension is exaggerated, the subject may enter a state of cardiogenic shock (the heart can no longer maintain blood pressure consistent with survival, manifested by loss of consciousness, pallor and hypothermia);
• Arrhythmias: changes in heart rhythm are variable, some such as ventricular tachycardia, tip twisting, and ventricular fibrillation are particularly severe and may cause sudden cardiac death;
• syncope: it is the loss of knowledge that can be due to an exaggerated hypotension or the appearance of a malignant arrhythmia. Syncope is not an exclusive symptom of heart attack, but it is certainly an event that always requires the greatest attention to define its causes;
• sudden deathIn some cases, the heart attack can start directly with death without giving a premonitory sign.

How to behave if symptoms are felt?

If you think you have one of the symptoms described above, you must first stay calm to badyze your situation rationally. Try to remember exactly when your chest pain started because it is important for doctors to decide which type of therapy is best for you based on the time since the onset of the heart attack. If you have doubts about your symptoms or if you have doubts about the description of the previous symptoms, call your family doctor for clarification so that he can better guide you in your subsequent choices. However, if you are sure of your symptoms, you can call 118 directly. At this point, you will likely be given an electrocardiogram (ECG) test sufficient to diagnose a heart attack.

How to prevent a heart attack?

To prevent heart attacks, you should try to follow a healthy lifestyle that will help you avoid many other diseases. you should andcigarette in all its forms because it is one of the main risk factors. Dedicated every day to play at least one hour of physical exercise, also light, because it is able to reduce pressure, cholesterol and body weight.

Check your diet by trying to limit excess, especially you should limit your intake animal fat (eg butter) and prefer vegetable fats. You should also try to take polyunsaturated fatty acids every day (omega-3 and omega-6). Medical checks are a fundamental step in the prevention of cardiovascular disease: they are periodically subjected to general medical checks.

In particular, you should periodically perform blood tests (blood test) and cardiological checks, especially from 50 years of age. The cardiologist will tell you, if necessary, the medications to take to control hypertension and hypercholesterolemia.

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