Wilsonville Spokesman Online

Is it a heart attack?

Heart attack symptoms come on slowly, cardiac arrest is more immediate

• Published: 3/2/2010 11:14:24 AM

Life-saving device
An AED, such as the one pictured here, monitors electrical impulses in the heart, and can be used bystander. Most health clubs and public agencies have AEDs.

What are the symptoms of a heart attack? A cardiac arrest?

Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue has provided the following information on recognizing the signs and symptoms of both, and what you should do if you are suffering a heart attack, or someone nearby goes into cardiac arrest.

HEART ATTACK:

A heart attack can begin so slowly or mildly that a person is unaware of what he or she is experiencing. It is a “plumbing” problem in the heart.
 
Most heart attacks happen at home.
 
The heart is a muscle and it deteriorates with each passing minute from the onset of a heart attack until treatment.
 
TVF&R paramedics respond to thousands of heart-related calls each year, many of which involve patients who wait hours – sometimes days – before calling 9-1-1. 
 
Tragically, many heart attack patients die (because the heart goes into cardiac arrest) or – if they do survive - have reduced quality of life following their heart attack because of the damage to the heart.
 
Symptoms of a heart attack:
Chest discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes or goes away and returns. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain.   
Upper body discomfort, such as pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw, or stomach.  
Shortness of breath before, during, or after other discomforts.  
Other signs, including breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea, or lightheadedness.       
Women are more likely to experience symptoms such as shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or jaw pain.
 
Actions:
Don’t delay – call 9-1-1 right away!  Time is of the essence. 
If you are experiencing one or more symptoms of a heart attack:  Call 9-1-1.  Do not ignore your symptoms and do not drive yourself to the hospital.

Every TVF&R unit has at least one paramedic and specialized cardiac equipment. We can assess if a heart attack is occurring and administer drugs and treatment on scene if needed. In addition, thanks to the specialized equipment carried by TVF&R units (12 Lead EKG), treatment occurs more quickly for the patient at the hospital. The information gathered on scene by our paramedics is transmitted to the hospital before the patient arrives, allowing hospital staff to page cardiologists and begin mixing drugs in anticipation of your arrival.
 
The national standard for field to cath lab is about 90 minutes. Thanks to our 12 lead EKGs in the field, we now have patients making it from field to the cath lab in under an hour!  Remember – time is muscle!!
 
CARDIAC ARREST

A cardiac arrest strikes suddenly and includes a loss of consciousness. It is often due to an “electrical” problem with the heart.
 
Sudden cardiac arrest is a leading cause of death among adults. Annually, it claims the lives of approximately 300,000 adults, many of whom die before ever reaching a hospital. 
 
When a cardiac arrest occurs, the person is clinically dead. 
 
The survival rate for cardiac arrest patients is bleak; the national average for patients who live to be discharged from a hospital is only about 5 percent.
 
However, TVF&R’s survival rate over the past three years has ranged from 10.8 percent to 22.9 percent – making it among the top in the nation! 
 
TVF&R attributes its strong survival rates to several factors: quick calls to 9-1-1, dispatchers instructing callers to perform Hands-Only CPR, the growing availability of AEDs in the region, and TVF&R’s quick EMS response.
 
CPR keeps blood circulating to the heart until emergency responders arrive. Last year, the American Heart Association acknowledged that compression-only CPR (hands-only) works just as well as traditional CPR for adults in sudden cardiac arrest.  Pressing deeply and quickly on a victim’s chest until paramedics arrive is easier to remember and eliminates a barrier for people opposed to mouth-to-mouth breathing.  “We hope that as more people learn about hands-only CPR, they will be even more willing to jump in and help if they see someone suddenly collapse.”
 
The most common cardiac arrest can be helped by an electrical shock delivered by a defibrillator. When a person suffers a sudden cardiac arrest—for each minute that passes without defibrillation—their chance of survival decreases by 7–10%.
 
TVF&R sends a team of paramedics, advanced life support drugs, and a medically-advanced defibrillator to every medical call.
 
Today, there are also low-cost, easy to use Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) that a layperson or non-traditional responder (police officer, mass transit driver, etc.) can use before paramedics arrive. A microprocessor inside the defibrillator analyzes the victim’s heart rhythm through adhesive electrodes and advises the operator whether a shock is needed. The electric current is delivered through the victim’s chest wall through the adhesive electrode pads. AEDs actually stop the heart from fibrillating (quivering), allowing the heart to reinstate a normal heart beat. An AED will not deliver a shock if it is not necessary.
 
AEDs are becoming more common in the hands of non-medical responders. Their verbal and visual prompts make them easy enough for a child to use. AEDs are appropriate where there is a greater-than-average population of "at-risk" employees or visitors, or in "high-risk" locations such as nursing homes, airports, shopping malls, health clubs, and schools.

Today, more than 100 agencies, facilities, and businesses in TVF&R's service area have AEDs. In addition, almost all law enforcement agencies within TVF&R’s service area carry AEDs and respond to cardiac incidents when available. To date, there have been several cardiac victims saved thanks to law enforcement officers who heard the cardiac call dispatched and responded with their AED prior to TVF&R units arriving.
 


 

 

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