Heart Attack Advice

[RichLB]

A friend forwarded this to me and I found it helpful. Beware, though, I am NOT a medical doctor so can't vouch for the advice.
------------
HOW TO SURVIVE A HEART ATTACK WHEN ALONE.

Since many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack without help, the person whose heart is beating improperly and who begins to feel faint, has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness.

However these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously. A deep breath should be taken before each cough and the cough must be deep and prolonged as when producing sputum from deep inside the chest. A breath and cough must be repeated about every 2 seconds without let up until help arrives on until the heart begins to beat normally again.

Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movement squeezes the heart and keeps the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart helps it regain a normal rhythm.

I've also been told taking an aspirin is helpful as it thins the blood.

[Rogie]

Thanks for alerting us to this Rich, but having had a look at a few sites that offer advice on how to survive a heart attack (either when alone or not) it seems the method you describe is unlikely to be helpful. In fact one medic has gone so far as to say this about it:

“It’s right up there with voodoo as far as I’m concerned,”

http://mendedhearts.org/resources/about ... hing-rumor

However, the advice to take aspirin would appear to be widely advocated.

There's also some what seems to me very sensible advice here:

To know if you’re suffering from a heart attack, you first need to be able to identify its symptoms. Classical symptoms of a heart attack include:

Severe chest pain (like squeezing, or a heaviness, or pressing) at the central or left part of the chest, lasting usually for at least 20 min. The pain may also radiate to the left upper arm, neck or jaw.

Profuse sweating and a feeling of impending doom.

“About 90 per cent of heart attack sufferers experience the classical symptoms.

So, unless I'm missing something -- if you're on your own, far from having a mere 10 seconds in which to act, you are most likely to be able to contact the emergency services, or a friend or neighbour, yourself. Indeed that happened to a friend of mine just before Christmas last year; he phoned me to say he had terrible chest pains. He didn't own a car so I went round to his flat and took him to the local hospital. He duly recovered.

https://www.healthxchange.sg/heart-lung ... when-alone

[readerc54]

This is good opportunity to make a plan if a medical emergency should occur. Many regular visitors and all ex-pats have had cause to go to a Thai hospital for more routine problems where the need for speed was not a factor. But with a heart attack, quickly getting to an emergency room (preferably where there's a cardiologist on duty) is critical.

Don't expect an organized response system westerners take for granted at home. Here it's fragmented and quality and response times can widely vary. If I was an ex-pat, I'd want to have visited the best options close by and assess their capabilities and whether they maintain their own ambulance service.

I'd also learn if my condo complex has a defribillator. Some major hotels may also have one. They're extremely user friendly to operate and the cost has come down a lot since they first became available. Perhaps a local ex-pat support group could take on the job of cataloging locations?

If you're in the Silom area in Bangkok, there are three hospitals in immediate vicinity:
- Bangkok Christian Hospital on Silom rd. (Has own ambulance service)
- Bangkok Nursing Home Hospital on Convent rd.
- Chulalongkrom Hospital on Rama 4 (among the leading Thai teaching hospitals)

And as Rogie suggests, a friend with a car may be an option.

[Undaunted]

What's next stool softeners?

[Trongpai]

Actually, it's quite common to die while sitting on the commode.

"Although it doesn't get much press (for obvious reasons), a disproportionately high number of people (usually older men who are in high risk categories for heart disease) die on the toilet........."

http://everything2.com/title/Why+people ... the+toilet

[Gaybutton]

Actually, it's quite common to die while sitting on the commode.

Then I guess a lot of last words are "Aww shit!" . . .

[readerc54]

What's next stool softeners?

So the next time you're pushing down to expel that reluctant turd, perhaps you'll want to reconsider the level of exertion--or the benefits of more fiber.

[Gaybutton]

the benefits of more fiber.

If I see enough views on this topic, I'm going to invest in prunes.

By the way, why is it sometimes called "stool" . . . ?

[windwalker]

Elementary my dear Button or rather alimentary! One sits on a stool/chair to defecate or shit. Thus the word stool is an euphemism for shit/feces.
As my Thai bf once said to me, "I go sit" and I say no "you go shit".

[thaiworthy]

I am a big believer in preventive care. If you can stave off a heart attack in the first place, so much the better. If you adopt a plan of diet and exercise, that is the best treatment. While obvious advice, it is easier said than done.

However, if you suffer from high blood pressure, invest in a blood pressure monitor. The more you test, the more it will motivate you to achieve preventive goals. Mine is the Omron brand.

Above all, quit smoking. My boyfriend smokes. His response to this issue is "my family is strong." Smoking increases the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, which includes coronary heart disease and stroke. Smoking damages the lining of your arteries, leading to a build up of fatty material (atheroma) which narrows the artery. This can cause angina, a heart attack or a stroke.

All this quick fix advice is nearly useless against SCA. A heart attack, also called a myocardial infarction, happens because of decreased blood supply to your heart's muscle. Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) occurs when your heart goes into a dangerous heart rhythm and suddenly stops working. Heart attack is rarely fatal, but SCA is fatal in 95 percent of cases.

Also, heredity may be a small factor if your family has a history of heart attacks. Heredity loads the gun, but environment pulls the trigger.