Cardiac arrest: treatment and prevention clarify that cardiac arrest can cause instant death in minutes if there’s no immediate and effective treatment.
What is cardiac arrest? Cardiac arrest is when your heart stops beating suddenly without warning. In such an instance, you lose your pulse, and without adequate blood flow, your brain and body lack oxygen. Hence, cardiac arrest is a life-threatening emergency.
It’s important to note that most people who have cardiac arrest also have coronary artery disease or ischemic heart disease. Because the plaque that builds up in your blood vessels can slow or stop blood from flowing into your heart. This results in a heart attack that hurts your heart’s cells and electrical system.
5 Secrets That Can Stop Heart Attack
Symptoms
Symptoms of cardiac arrest include:
- Loss of consciousness
- You collapse and stop breathing
- Pulse stops. And you might feel dizzy before it happens
- Chest pain is not ruled out, also a sick feeling or shortness of breath
- Your heart may beat really fast just before it stops
Causes
The major causes of cardiac arrest include the following:
- Heart Disease Link
- Certain genes raise your chances of arrhythmia. Arrhythmia is the improper beating of the heart whether irregular, fast, or too slow
- Intense physical activity can cause cardiac arrest if you already have a heart problem
- If you are born with heart defects
- Physical changes in your heart due to health problems or an infection
- Too little potassium or magnesium in your blood
- Major blood loss or serious lack of oxygen
- Your genes, high blood pressure, or for unknown reasons
Cardiac Arrest Is Not A Heart Attack
In the case of cardiac arrest, your heart stops beating suddenly without a warning. While in the case of a heart attack, your heart keeps on beating during a heart attack. And because blood flow gets cut off, your heart doesn’t get enough oxygen. These can damage your heart muscle.
So despite the fact that cardiac arrest and heart attack are two distinct conditions, cardiac arrest is linked to a heart attack. This means a heart attack can disrupt your heart’s structures and lead to cardiac arrest.
Cardiac Arrest Is Also Not Heart Failure
While cardiac arrest is a sudden, deadly situation, heart failure is serious. In the case of heart failure, your heart has not stopped, but your heart muscle is weak. So very soon, it will be unable to pump enough oxygen-rich blood to the rest of your body. This can leave you breathless, and tired during physical activity, including housework or taking a walk around your house.
Are you at risk for Cardiac Arrest?
Your risk for cardiac arrest is higher if you have heart disease. Then again your chances of cardiac arrest go up if you:
- Have a personal or family history of arrhythmias
- Are an older male
- Smoke or misuse drugs or alcohol
- Had one or more heart attacks in the past
- Troubled by diabetes, high blood pressure, heart failure, or kidney disease
- Are obese or not physically active
Role of Strong Emotion in Cardiac Arrest
Sudden strong feelings can cause deadly arrhythmias in some people. For instance, uncontrolled emotion is the most common feeling linked to cardiac arrest. And extreme shock whether good or bad can disrupt your heart’s rhythm. Therefore if your worries, anxiety, and depression affect your emotions, talk to a mental health professional.
Treatment
Cardiac arrest: treatment and prevention explain the treatment you have at home, and in the hospital, as well as the importance of a cardiologist. The reality is that cardiac arrest can cause sudden death within minutes, but instant medical help can save your life.
At home
First, call for an ambulance or send someone else to go for medical help. Then follow the directions that come with a device called a defibrillator. The device may send more than one pulse to jumpstart your heart. So, after your heart is shocked, you may need CPR performed on you until help arrives.
At the Hospital
Your heart will be monitored by a medical team for a while. Thereafter they determine the causes of your cardiac arrest, and how to reduce the likelihood of it happening again. And similarly, if you have heart disease, three things can happen: take medicine, make lifestyle changes, or have surgery to open narrowed or blocked vessels.
Visit a Cardiologist
A heart doctor, or cardiologist, can help you come up with a long-term treatment plan. In addition, see doctors who specialize in electrical problems that affect the heart. But no matter whom you go to, they will do some blood tests and check the electrical activity in your heart.
Prevention
According to cardiac arrest: treatment and prevention, the best way to prevent cardiac arrest begins with your diet. This is because lifestyle changes lower your risk of heart disease or heart attack. As such, start to eat a balanced diet low in added sugar, salt, and processed foods. This includes plenty of vegetables, fruits, healthy fats, whole grains, and lean meats. Your doctor or a dietitian may suggest the best diet to stop hypertension.
In addition to a healthy diet, get at least a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise per day. If you smoke, quit smoking to lower your risk of heart disease and make heart attack recovery easier. Maintaining a healthy weight is equally important since obesity plays a bigger role in heart disease if you are 34 or younger. Lastly, manage your health problems such as high blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and diabetes.
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