Hear Attack Treatment - Most people don't comprehend that they are having a heart attack or a heart disease in general until they have chest pain (angina or a heart attack). With each passing minute after a heart attack, the heart tissue loses oxygen and deteriorates or dies an irreversible death. Therefore, one should never ignore even the trivial heart attack symptoms. Urgent heart attack treatment can limit heart damage and saves lives.

Heart Attack Diagnosis and Tests

If you are worried about the risk of heart attack, see a cardiologist or health practitioner as soon as possible. Following a visit to the doctor, the heart attack treatment will begin and heart attack will be diagnosed by testing the patient's heart's performance by using the following tests:

Non-invasive procedures

Echocardiogram: This uses sound vibrations to create images of the internal structure of the heart. Along with images of the internal functioning of the heart, the blood flow noises are also captured in this test.
Electrocardiogram (ECG): This relies on the passage of electric signals in the heart and reads the heart's movements in the form of electrical signs on a monitor.
Other physical examinations used to diagnose heart attacks are MRI scan, CAT scan, PET scan, and X-ray.
Exercise Stress also helps to diagnose any coronary heart disorders.

Invasive Procedures

Blood tests to check cardiac enzymes in blood
Cardiovascular catheterization for internal viewing of blocked or unblocked channels)
Angioplasty is often carried out in combination with catheterization.

Once the diagnosis is confirmed or strongly suspected, doctors start the suitable heart attack treatment immediately. The main aim is to try to restore blood flow through the blood vessels supplying the heart.

Dr. Rajiv Mehrotra talks about heart attack treatment and diagnosis in the following video

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Heart Attack Treatment

If you or anybody you know encounters a heart attack, the best step to take is to get the patient to the nearest emergency room. Heart attack treatment needs to begin immediately. Heart attack treatment is aimed towards unblocking the clogged artery to enable a free flow of blood back in the heart to reduce muscle death. This is achieved at a trusted hospital using a combination of following methods:

Antiplatelet medications like glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors and aspirin that prevent blood clot formation in the coronary arteries
Anticoagulant medications like heparin, warfarin and direct thrombin inhibitors that prevent blood clot growth in the coronary arteries
Medications like nitroglycerin, angiotensin and beta blockers that decrease stress on the heart's muscle thereby reducing oxygen requirement
Medications that control abnormal heart rhythms
Medications for dissolving clots like TPK or TNK to open constricted or blocked arteries
Coronary angiography is conducted followed by Percutaneous - Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty (PTCA) with/without stenting
Supplemental oxygen provided externally into the heart area that increases supply of oxygen to the heart's muscle
Cardiac surgery i.e. heart bypass surgery

Also Read: Early Warning Signs of a Heart Attack in Men and Women - 10 Common Symptoms of Heart Attack After your heart attack treatment, you will be discharged from the hospital with due medications and follow up routines. It is ideal to visit your doctor once in a month after the treatment and go through necessary tests to understand if your heart is vulnerable to a second attack. To learn, how to recover from a heart attack and also lowering its likelihood, go to How to Prevent Heart Attack article. If you have a lot of questions about heart attack treatment and want to learn more, you should go to SDM Narayana Heart Centre and consult with them.