People should not ignore cardiac emergencies and avoid visiting hospitals due to apprehensions over contracting novel coronavirus, cardiologists in the city have cautioned.
The warning comes from experts on the occasion of World Heart Day observed on September 29.
“People are reluctant to visit hospitals fearing COVID-19 infection, but it also results in many ignoring symptoms of cardiac emergencies such as breathlessness or chest pain. Delayed medical attention can also create other complications,” P. Vijay Shekhar, cardiologist, Kauvery Heart City, told The Hindu.
As the medical community races to develop a vaccine to beat the virus, those with cardiac problems should be aware of ground realities, especially during lockdown. “Being a cardiac patient by itself is not considered an increased risk for contracting the virus, but the situation can get aggravated for those with associated diabetes or kidney disease or any other immuno-compromised condition,” said Kader Sahib Ashraf, consultant cardiologist, Apollo Speciality Hospitals, Tiruchi.
The virus can affect the heart indirectly through the lungs, where reduced oxygen levels stress the heart muscle. The organ can also be affected directly through clots in blood vessels that can cause heart attack or pulmonary thromboembolism; heart muscle being affected directly by the virus resulting in myocarditis or cardiac nerves causing irregular heartbeats resulting in palpitations, he said.
“Initially, since COVID-19 was said to increase blood clotting, in January and February, we were expecting a surge in the number of heart attacks as thrombosis is one of the basic causes of cardiac disease. But surprisingly, the number came down during the lockdown,” said Dr. Shekhar. “From 450-500 patients registered per month in January and February, the number came down to 200-250 during lockdown,” he added.
While it is tempting to see the dip as one of the ‘positive’ effects of the lockdown, it would be unwise to attribute the changed dietary habits, isolation and lower exposure to air pollution experienced during the lockdown as a contributing factor to the lower numbers, said Suresh Kumar, assistant professor and consultant cardiologist, KAPV Medical College, GVN Hospitals and Maruti Hospital.
“Generally, it takes at least three years of lifestyle change to bring about a positive effect on cardiac health. What we have noticed, even before the lockdown, is the changing demographic of heart attack cases. While it was once associated with people over 60 years, now anyone from 25 to 30 years can suffer from cardiovascular disease, mainly due to the sedentary and stress-filled lifestyle of professionals these days,” he said.
Learning to manage stress is key to a healthy heart, said Dr. Suresh. “We should make exercise a part of our daily routine, whether at work or home. It is very sad to see heart disease cut off young men and women with familial responsibilities in their prime. Irrespective of the pandemic, everyone should make a greater effort to ensure a healthy heart,” he added.
