Central Carolina HEALTH - Winter 2015 - (Page 15)

e Websit HOW HEALTHY IS YOUR HEART? A quick assessment called My Life Check delivers a personalized heart score and life plan based on data you enter. Visit mylifecheck. heart.org. Blockage to blood vessels can result in organ damage. "When a blood vessel going to the heart is blocked, you get a heart attack. When a blood vessel going to the brain is blocked, you get an ischemic stroke," says Jeffrey Saver, MD, a spokesman for the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Minutes count. "Every minute that goes by in a typical stroke without treatment, 2 million nerve cells are lost. How does that translate into days and months and years for patients? Every 15 minutes faster that you treat a stroke, you give that patient one extra healthy month of life," Saver says. Meanwhile, a "door-to-balloon" time of 90 minutes is critical in the most severe heart attacks. "Door-to-balloon" measures the interval between when a patient arrives in an ER and when balloon inﬂation in the blocked artery reestablishes blood ﬂow. There may be warning signs. Angina, which is severe chest pain caused by inadequate supply of blood to the heart, may precede a heart attack. A transient ischemic attack (TIA), or "ministroke," can warn of a stroke. In fact, 15 percent of major strokes occur after a TIA. Both warrant immediate medical attention. THE DIFFERENCES The symptoms are very different. While heart attacks are sometimes painful, strokes typically are not. Most heart attacks are tipped off by pain, discomfort or pressure in the chest or arms, back, neck, jaw or stomach; and other signs such as shortness of breath, cold sweats, nausea or lightheadedness. The American Stroke Association urges the use of the FAST acronym to recognize a stroke: * Face drooping * Arm weakness * Speech difficulty * Time to call 911 Patients may delay medical attention for a stroke. "The pain often experienced with heart attack galvanizes patients to seek treatment quickly. With stroke, patients tend to wait to see if deﬁcits go away," Saver says. The problem with a wait-and-see approach is that the clotbusting drug tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) is most effective for treating strokes when administered within three hours after the onset of symptoms. Opeolu Adeoye, MD, chairman of the professional education committee for the American Stroke Association, was lead researcher in a study that found while 81 percent of Americans could reach a hospital that administers tPA within an hour, only 4 percent of tPA candidates actually received it. "Too few patients recognize the symptoms of stroke," he says. Most stroke patients don't arrive at an ER until more than 24 hours after onset of symptoms, the National Stroke Association reports. Heart attacks hit the young harder. "On average, stroke patients tend to be 10 years older than heart attack patients. Heart attacks tend to occur in the 40s and 50s, while stroke hits harder in patients in the 60s and 70s," Saver says. Brain attacks do more long-term damage. Certainly, heart attacks can have serious, longterm consequences, such as heart failure or a limitation on activities. Without minimizing heart attack, however, it is important to note that stroke is the leading cause of adult disability in the U.S. It can rob survivors of the ability to move, speak, remember, and function independently. "It's conceivable to have a heart attack and survive and recover and be yourself. The brain is a bit less forgiving. The possibility of long-term disability is very real," Adeoye says. DEFENSE FOR BOTH ATTACKS The best approach with heart and brain attacks is to prevent them from occurring. Simple, everyday strategies can help: 1 Make healthy food choices. Swap healthy fats for unhealthy fats. For example, try olive or canola oil instead of butter. Eat more fresh produce to control cholesterol and your waistline. And limit salt: Nine out of 10 Americans consume too much sodium. 2 Get moving. Regular exercise improves blood circulation, controls blood pressure and lowers cholesterol. People who are inactive are 20 percent more likely to have a stroke or ministroke than those who exercise four times or more per week, a recent study suggests. 3 Quit smoking. Smoking steals your good cholesterol, temporarily raises blood pressure and increases the likelihood that blood will form clots. Change is never easy. But making positive lifestyle choices today can go a long way toward protecting your ticker-and your thinker-tomorrow. C E N T R A LC A R O L I N A H O S P I TA L .C O M | 15 http://mylifecheck.heart.org http://mylifecheck.heart.org http://www.CENTRALCAROLINAHOSPITAL.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Central Carolina HEALTH - Winter 2015

Contents

Central Carolina HEALTH - Winter 2015