STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: As mass awareness regarding Sudden Cardiac Death is very less with very meagre population knowing about it, so keeping in view all these factors Cardiac awareness cum health check up as well as screening camp was organised by Department of Cardiology SSH Jammu at Shiv Mandir, Indra Nagar, Miran sahib area of R S Pura.
Those people having cardiac risk were encouraged to have healthy and cardiac friendly lifestyle which can lead to gradual decrease in the number of sudden cardiac events.
While interacting with the people, Dr Sushil Sharma stated that Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD) is death due to a cardiovascular cause that occurs within one hour of the onset of symptoms.
A sudden cardiac arrest occurs when the heart stops beating or is not beating sufficiently to maintain perfusion and life, he said adding that SCD is a catastrophic event, which has a huge adverse impact on the health care system.
Coronary artery disease is the most common cause of sudden cardiac death, accounting for up to 80% of all cases, he said adding that Cardiomyopathies and genetic channelopathies account for the remaining causes.
The most common causes of non-ischemic sudden cardiac death are cardiomyopathy related to obesity, alcoholism, and fibrosis, he said.
There are various symptoms one may encounter before experiencing a sudden cardiac arrest. Chest discomfort, irregular heart palpitations, short spells of breathlessness, sudden feeling of weakness and light headedness that can lead to unconsciousness. Most people who are indulged in a sedentary lifestyle that involves incessant smoking, drugs, drinking too much alcohol, obesity, lack of a balanced diet, irregular sleep cycles and being involved in a high stress work environment.
These factors can increase the risk of having a sudden cardiac arrest or can lead to other medical conditions and complications too. People who have had a family history of heart diseases and diabetes may also have high chances of suffering from SCD, he added .
Further Dr Sushil Sharma told that management of SCD involves the crucial step of performing a Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) within the first 6 minutes. This can greatly improve the chances of survival as it immediately restarts heart functions and provides blood supply to the brain. He further elaborated that to stay on top of your health one must start following healthier lifestyle practices on a day-to-day basis.
A healthy regime that includes eating a nutrition rich balanced diet, exercising regularly, refraining from and overcoming habits such as smoking and drugs, regulating alcohol consumption and sleep cycles and management of stress.
Fortunate to have survived a SCD and are at a risk to experience it again, an ICD (Implantable cardioverter defibrillator) or Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) devices might be implanted to monitor, regulate and improve your heartbeat and pump performance and provide electrical shocks during potentially fatal cardiac arrhythmias to restore normalcy.
More than 200 patients were examined, evaluated and advised during the camp. ECG, Blood Sugar and HBA1C was conducted and medicines were also given as per the requirements
Prominent Members of the area Harjeet Singh, Manjit Singh, Balwinder Singh, Mamta Malhotra (Panch) ,Vijay Sharma and Kamal Sharma appreciated the efforts of Dr Sushil and his team for conducting Cardiac awareness cum health check up camp in their area . Others who were part of this camp include Dr Nasir Ali Choudhary (Cardiologist) and Dr Dhaneshwar Kapoor. Paramedics and Volunteers Include Kamal Sharma, Gourav Sharma, Maneet Kumar, Ranjeet Singh, Rajkumar, Mukesh kumar, Milan Kapoor, Maninder Singh , Nitesh Mahajan and Akshay Kumar.
