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The current global health crisis has highlighted many critical healthcare issues the world is grappling with. What matters today, more than ever, is the preparedness. It's time to ask some important questions what are the disease burdens that are more at risk? How are we addressing them? More importantly, with limited access to our doctors, are we taking the precautions we need? This is particularly true in the case of cardiovascular diseases. Today, on the occasion of World Heart Day, it becomes necessary to underline the need to watch out for the early signs, and not miss any symptoms when it comes to heart care.
Not only are people with heart conditions more at risk of contracting the COVID-19 virus, the lockdowns prompted by coronavirus have isolated these patients even more. The access to doctors is limited. As virtual meetings take over meeting your doctors in person, it is important to ensure that one does not ignore symptoms like shortness of breath, chest discomfort, palpitations, weakness, etc.
While telemedicine is always an option, it is important not to ignore any warning signs. You must up on how to take care of your heart and know about the symptoms, especially because sudden heart attacks come unannounced. If you think you are at risk, take the necessary action and be aware about the symptoms. Today, there are many technologies that help you regulate the rhythm of your heart. These are tools that help you understand the warning signs and seek timely help.
It may not always be possible to reach a hospital well in time to get immediate medical help for a condition like a sudden cardiac arrest. This occurs when there is an electrical disturbance in the heart that causes disruptions in pumping blood and stops blood flow to the body. This causes the heart to either beat too fast or slowly. These irregularities of the heart's rhythm can lead to a cardiac arrest in some cases. While immediate CPR is essential in such cases, many advanced techniques are helping patients manage these symptoms better in the initial stages.
On the occasion of World Heart Day, Dr. Ajay Naik Interventional Cardiologist, CIMS Hospital, Ahmedabad says, "We have technologies that can now help you handle irregular heartbeats better. These technologies are more critical than ever before as patients with such symptoms may not frequent the hospitals for a regular check-up as they did in the pre-COVID times. We have systems like ICD which help in delivering electrical energy to the heart to restore the heart's rhythm. And the best part is that these devices come with long battery life." He further goes on to add, "Now, you also have the cardiac resynchronization therapy devices, which is a is a multifunctional device that can save the life of a patient in case of sudden cardiac arrest."
'What's interesting is how technology is transforming heartcare. According to Dr. V.Rajashekher, Senior Consultant Interventional Cardiologist, Yashoda hospitals, Hyderabad, "Today, we have implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and CRTD. Earlier, ICD ran on batteries that would last only for a few years. But today, we have devices that run on slimmer batteries that are more advanced. These batteries last for more years and effectively reduce the risk of infection due to frequent replacement procedures." Dr Rajashekhar also adds that CRT-D significantly improves the pumping capacity of the heart. "CRT-D has been shown to improve symptomatic status, decrease HF episodes, decrease, hospital admissions and improve longevity of life in many scientific studies,'' he says.
On World Heart Day today, it is important to note that while technology has a role to play in the heartcare story, we cannot ignore the most important role of lifestyle changes that need to be incorporated to manage the symptoms. Prevention is better than cure, after all. Here is what you need to do to keep the risk of heart diseases at bay.
Tough times call for tougher measures. As we wait for the impact of the pandemic to fade, we cannot ignore the symptoms that weaken the heart. Not only is it important to be able to manage the symptoms at home, it is time to also embrace technologies that exist to aid us.