HEART ATTACK HEART ATTACK

WHAT IS A HEART ATTACK?

•Heart attack: Myocardial infraction or acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is the medical term for an event commonly known as a heart attack.

• A heart attack happens when the flow of oxygen-rich blood to a section of heart muscle suddenly becomes blocked and the heart can't get oxygen. If blood flow isn't restored quickly, the section of heart muscle begins to die.

POSSIBLE CAUSES

What causes a coronary artery to spasm isn't always clear. A spasm may be related to:

• Taking certain drugs, such as cocaine

• Emotional stress or pain

• Exposure to extreme cold

• Cigarette smoking

• Discomfort, pressure, heaviness, or pain in the chest, arm, or below the breastbone

• Discomfort radiating to the back, jaw, throat, or arm

• Fullness, indigestion, or choking feeling (may feel like heartburn)

• Sweating, nausea, vomiting, or dizziness

• Extreme weakness, anxiety, or shortness of breath

• Rapid or irregular heartbeats

Symptoms

Diagnosis methods: To diagnose a heart attack, an emergency care team will ask you about your symptoms and begin to evaluate you. The diagnosis of the heart attack is based on your symptoms and test results. The goal of treatment is to treat you quickly and limit heart muscle damage

Types of Diagnosis

EGG

Blood test

Echocardiography

Cardiac catheterization

Diagnosis

TREATMENT Once heart attack is diagnosed, treatment begins immediately

-- possibly in the ambulance or emergency room. Drugs and surgical procedures are used to treat a heart attack.

Drugs used during a heart attack may include:

• Aspirin to prevent blood clotting that may worsen the heart attack

• Other antiplatelets, such as Brilinta, Effient, or Plavix, to prevent blood clotting

• Thrombolytic therapy ("clot busters") to dissolve any blood clots in the heart's arteries

• Any combination of the above

PREVENTION

If you want to know how to prevent heart attack, one of the best tips is sticking to a heart-smart diet. That may mean drastically changing what you eat, but cutting out certain foods can greatly reduce your heart attack risk. Here are some tips on eating a heart-smart diet:

• Limit unhealthy fats and cholesterol.

• Stick to lean or low-fat proteins.

• Bring on the fruit and vegetables!

• Choose whole-grains.

• Reduce sodium in your diet.

STROKE STROKE

WHAT IS A STROKE?

STROKE: A sudden loss of brain function that occurs when blood flow to an area in the brain is cut off due to a blockage or rupture of a blood vessel carrying oxygen and nutrients to the brain.

The brain cannot receive the blood and oxygen it needs, resulting in dead brain cells.

WHO CAN GET IT?

Anyone can get a stroke, but some are more at risk than others. Although most people who have a stroke are older, almost one third of strokes occur in people under the age of 65, including children

Stroke is the third leading cause of death in Canada. Six percent of all deaths in Canada are due to stroke

Each year, over 14,000 Canadians die from stroke (usually more women than men)

There are estimated 50,000 strokes in Canada each year. That’s one stroke every 10 minutes

About 315,000 Canadians are living with the effects of stroke

Every year, 15 million people worldwide suffer a stroke. Nearly six million die and another five million are left permanently disabled

TYPES OF STROKES

• There are 3 main types of strokes

• 1) Ichemic Stroke

• 2) Hermorrhagic Stroke

• 3) TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack)

There are different causes for each of these types of strokes

ISCHEMIC STROKE

85% of strokes are Ischemic

Ischemic strokes are caused by the interruption of blood flow to the brain due to a blood clot. The buildup of plaque (fatty materials, calcium and scar tissue) result in blood clots and narrowing of the arteries that supply blood to the brain. This narrowing is called atherosclerosis.

Two types of Ischemic stroke:

1) Thrombotic stroke: caused by a blood clot that forms in an artery directly leading to the brain.

2) Embolic stroke: occurs when a clot develops somewhere else in the body (usually the heart) and travels through the blood stream to the brain.

HERMORRHAGIC STROKE

A Hermorrhagic Stroke occurs when a blood vessel in your brain leaks or bursts

This can be caused by many conditions that affect your blood vessels such as uncontrolled high blood pressure and weak spots in your blood vessel walls

Two types of Hermorrhagic strokes:

Intracerebral hemorrhage: a blood vessel in the brain bursts and spills into the surrounding brain tissue, damaging brain cells.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage: an artery on or near the surface of your brain bursts and spills into the space between the surface of your brain and your skull.

TRANSIENT ISCHEMIC ATTACK (TIA)

A transient Ischemic Attack or TIA is also known as a mini stroke which is caused by a temporary interruption of blood flow to the brain

Similar to the Ischemic stroke, except it can go away within a few minutes or hours

WHAT PARTS OF THE BODY ARE AFFECTED BY A STROKE?

Since different areas of the brain control different body function, the effects of a stroke depend on the location of the affected brain tissue

The right or left side of the brain, which can affect different behaviours and actions depending on which side is affected

Nerve cells in the brain tissue

Carotid and Vertebral Arteries (The arteries that are blocked with plaque)

SYMPTOMS Sudden warning signs of a stroke include:

Numbness or weakness in face, arm, or leg (especially on one side)

Drooping face

Bad headace

Confusion or trouble understanding other people

Trouble speaking

Trouble seeing with 1 or both eyes

Trouble walking or staying balanced and coordinated

Dizziness

DIAGNOSIS METHODS

Physical examination Checking blood pressure

Listening to heart and neck arteries (makes a whooshing sound over neck)

Opthalmoscope to check signs of tiny cholesterol clots in blood vessels at the back of eyes

Blood tests

CT scan

MRI

Carotid Ultrasound

Cerebral angiogram

Echocardiogram

TREAMENT

tPA (tissue plasminogen activator) can only be given to patients who are having a stroke caused by a blood clot (ischemic stroke) because stops a stroke by breaking up the blood clot and restoring your blood flow

Surgery can be used to:

to remove blood that is pooled in brain after a hermorrhagic stroke

repair broken blood vessels

Remove plaque from inside carotid artery

Medication such as Apirin and,Heparin, prevents blood clots from forming

Non medical treaments are also available, where treatments are performed through a thin, flexible tube called a catheter into the blood vessels or the brain that remove plaque buildup from arteries and treat aneurysms

SIDE AFFECTS OF TREATMENT

Though Aspirin is an immediate, important treatment given in the emergency it has side affects. It can irritate the stomach and intestines and cause indigestion, nausea, and vomiting

Heparin side affects include abnormal bleeding, such as black stools, which reflect intestinal bleeding, or orange, pinkish or smoke-colored urine

Side effects of tPA include Fever, Hemorrhage or bleeding, minor bleeding in the gums/nose and bleeding in the brain

IS IT CURABLE?

There is no cure for a stroke, but there are many advanced medical and surgical treatments available for prevention and recovery

RECOVERY

Recovery from a stroke may take months or years

Many never fully recover and can have permanent or temporary affects of the stroke including:

Inability to move or weakness on one side of body

Problems with thinking, awareness, attention, learning, judgement amd memory

Problems with controlling or expressing emotions

Numbness or strange sensations

Pain in hands or feet that worsen with movement and temperature changes

Depression, anxiety, frustration, and anger

LIFESTYLE CHANGES AND PREVENTION

Mainting a healthy weight

Regular exercise (at least 30 minutes of exercise per day)

Quit smoking

Cut down alcohol intake

Eating a healthy (a low fat, high fibre diet)

Limitting salt intake

This can all prevent atherosclerosis, high blood pressure and high cholesterol which are important risk factors for strokes.

DRINKING DIET SODA DAILY MAY SEVERELY INCREASE RISK OF HEART ATTACK AND STROKE

Regular diet soda consumption may significantly raise your risk of heart attack and stroke, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Miami and published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

://www.naturalnews.com/045846_soda_consumption_heart_attack_stroke_risk.html

ReferencesAmerican Stroke Association. (2013, May 23). Stroke Treatments. Retrieved from http://www.strokeassociation.org/STROKEORG/AboutStroke/Treatment/Stroke-Treatments_UCM_310892_Article.jspHeart and Stroke Foundation. (2014). Stroke-Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. Retrieved from http://www.heartandstroke.com/site/c.ikIQLcMWJtE/b.3483933/How Is a Stroke Treated? - NHLBI, NIH. (2014, March 26). Retrieved from http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/stroke/treatment.htmlJose Vega M.D., Ph.D. (2014). Side Effects of Coumadin, Plavix and Other Blood Thinners. Retrieved from http://stroke.about.com/od/caregiverresources/a/blood_thinners.htmMayo Clinic. (2014, April 15). Stroke Definition - Diseases and Conditions - Mayo Clinic. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/stroke/basics/definition/con-20042884Stroke: Treatment & Care. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com/stroke/guide/stroke-treatment-care

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heart-attack/in-depth/heart-attack-symptoms/art-20047744

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Heart-attack/Pages/Diagnosis.aspx

http://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/guide/heart-disease-heart-attacks