Raju Srivastava, a comedian, had a heart attack while exercising in a gym. Does doing intense exercise increase your chance of having a heart attack?
Raju Srivastava, a comedian, had a heart attack on August 10 while exercising in a gym. There have been reports over the years connecting intense physical activity and sudden cardiac death. Does doing intense exercise increase your chance of having a heart attack?
Why do heart attacks happen?
When the coronary arteries that provide blood to the heart muscle suddenly get blocked, a heart attack results.
Angina, or chest pain during exertion, is caused by a chronic blockage of a coronary artery of 70% or more because the available blood flow cannot keep up with the increasing oxygen demand during exercise. But soft plaques that develop in the coronary arteries can also rupture, leading to the formation of a sizable clot, which can result in a heart attack (acute myocardial infarction). There may be no preceding symptoms or warning signs before this. According to Prof. K Srinath Reddy, a cardiologist, epidemiologist, and head of the Public Health Foundation of India, even 30% plaques can rupture and result in the formation of a sizable obstructive clot (PHFI).
It's a popular misperception that blockages in arteries are caused by deposits of fat (lipids, cholesterol), cells, and other substances, much like obstructions in home plumbing. According to Dr. Tushar Gore, managing director of Resonance Laboratories, this is untrue.
The endothelial cell barrier that protects the artery's lining from cells and cholesterol particles is breached, causing blockages. As a result, there is a bulge, or pimple, on the artery wall. Plaque or stenosis are terms for this. The plaque need not intrude into the artery; it may also do so. According to him, when such blockages are broken up and disrupted inside the coronary artery, blood clotting mechanisms are triggered to "fix" the damage caused by the disruption of the plaque.
Plaques develop in the coronary arteries as a result of inflammation-causing elements inflicting damage on the blood vessel lining, claims Dr. Reddy.
According to Dr. Reddy,
The plaque might then form at the site of the damage as a result of blood-circulating fats.
Factors that can contribute to this inflammation include high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes, poor diets, stress, insufficient sleep, and recent infections.
If there is a rapid or significant surge in one or more of those chronic sources of inflammation, Dr. Reddy continued, "each of those chronic causes of inflammation can also quickly precipitate a plaque rupture leading to a heart attack."
What results in cardiac death when exercising?
In circumstances where blockages remain undiscovered, and occasionally in the background of a known diagnosis, sudden cardiac death after vigorous physical exercise occurs more frequently.
According to Dr. Reddy, strenuous activity can potentially result in plaque rupture or electrical abnormalities in the heart that lead to cardiac arrest.
When compared to abrupt cardiac arrest at rest, where the heart is often weak (heart failure), patients who are recovered in such a condition have a greater probability of survival, according to Dr. Suman Bhandari, Visiting Consultant, Interventional Cardiology, Fortis Escorts Heart Institute.
This is not to say that exercise is harmful to the heart. "It is crucial to identify and manage the risk factors that cause plaque to form and burst in the coronary arteries. Indians are more likely than other population groups to experience a heart attack at a younger age, thus more care and caution are required, according to Dr. Reddy.
A diagnostic test might be useful,
Three factors must be found in order to determine risk: the existence of tiny plaques, the propensity for plaque disruption (also known as vulnerability), and the degree to which blood clots. Only the initial diagnostic step, the detection of tiny plaque, can be done with reliable non-invasive diagnostic procedures. Even if testing were accessible, none of these three characteristics would provide a reliable window into the future because they are all influenced by a person's lifestyle and the surroundings.
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