Cardiac Arrest - Essay Example

?Cardiac Arrest What is Cardiac Arrest? Cardiac arrest is not a disease really unknown to people, it is a health threat people have been facing sincedecades. Cardiac arrest can be described as a dysfunction of heart functioning due to the interruption in its normal working pattern. When the heart’s sustenance is at risk, it cannot pump anymore blood to the human system and hence the body dies. The heart breakdown can have various symptoms in humans, but the extreme tension on this organ can invariably lead to cardiac arrest and finally death. The heart is an organ working on electrical mechanism, and all the organs of the body receive blood from heart. According to (Medicin net)“The heart is an electrical pump, where the electricity is generated in special pacemaker cells in the upper chamber, or atrium, of the heart”. When the heart muscles cannot contract and expand, the blood supply from heart stops and the body of an individual dooms to death. The death occurs in cardiac arrest mainly due to the lack of supply in blood and oxygen to the brain. It is unfortunate to know that sudden death mainly happen due to cardiac arrest and many a times people are unaware before hand that their heart functioning is weak. The heart is a muscle and when the blood supplying vessels get narrowed the heart gets irritated .In cardiac arrest the blood vessels completely get blocked due to the clotting of blood and it leads to chest pain. Normally speaking, there are many causes for cardiac arrest and it includes heart attack, choking, electrocution and drowning. Heart Conditions that Lead to Sudden Cardiac Arrest. The death by sudden cardiac arrest happens as a result of major abnormality in the heart rhythm. This abnormality of rhythm knows as arrhythmia is a result of malfunctioning in the working pattern of the heart. Unlike other organs in the body, the heart does not depend on nerve system as it has its specific electrical stimulator. The most common cause of cardiac arrest is the arrhythmia or ventricular fibrillation involved in it. Normally, cardiac arrest is not a condition which happens on it own .The following are the heart condition which lead to sudden cardiac arrest. Coronary heart disease: Mostly coronary heart disease occurs to people who suffer from coronary heart problems. These peoples have clogged blood vessels which can create problem for normal heart functioning. Heart attack: If a person encounters with heart attack due to the vermicular fibrillation, the result can be sudden cardiac arrest. Moreover, heart attract creates scars in heart tissue which lead to electrical short circuits interfering with it and causing cardiac arrest. Cardiomyopathy(Enlarged Heart):Once the muscular walls of heart get thickened the result can be cardiac arrest. Since this process makes heart muscles abnormal, the outcome can be cardiac arrest. Valvulart heart illness: The narrowing or leaking of the heart valves can cause thickening of heart muscles which can lead to cardiac arrest. Congenital heart problem :Sometimes the heart condition during birth can lead to cardiac arrest among young children and adolescents Electrical abnormalities in heart: At times the problem in electrical system of heart functioning alone can cause sudden cardiac arrest. Risk Each year more than 3, 00,000 people in America encounters with sudden cardiac arrest and it happen mostly in people who have crossed 30s.It is usually observed that men are at more risk to this disease than women. The main risk factor for sudden cardiac arrest is coronary artery disease (CAD), which remains undiagnosed in many people. It is seen that most people who suffered sudden cardiac arrest had a minor history of coronary artery diseases. CAD is a silent disease and can kill people without them being aware of it. There are also many other risk factors which can lead to sudden cardiac arrest which are as follows; a) Family history: A family history and inheritance can be the main risk factor for people to undergo cardiac arrest. With a genetic influence, people can be more prone to acquire arrhythmia and verticualr fibrillation and can suffer from heart ailments. b) A history of arrythmia : People born in families with long history of arrhythmia can possibly confront with cardiac arrest in the later stage of their life. c) Heart failure : Heart failure occurs when the body is not receiving enough oxygen to continue its working. So a chronic heart failure can result in cardiac arrest. d)Drug abuse: The use of drugs and alcohol can be a very a risky factor for the healthy working of heart. “Teens and youngsters are more prone to use alcohol and drugs in an abusive manner. If it continues on a regular manner, the heart beat can escalate abnormally leading to cardiac arrest”(American medical Association). Test & Diagnosis The cardiac arrest is a situation arising without prior notice, and it demands emergency treatment in most cases. Doctors mostly are incapable of diagnosing sudden cardiac arrest by means of medical tests. On the contrary cardiac arrest is often diagnosed after everything happens. However, the doctors employ many tests to detect the risk of cardiac arrest in people. a)EKG : EKG ,otherwise called electrocardiogram, is a simple and painless test which records the electrical process involved in the heart’s functioning. It studies whether the heart functioning is steady or irregular.EKG scans the heart fully, and finds whether the chambers and valves of heart are working perfectly. This test also shows if any damages are caused to the heart due to coronary heart disease or whether the person has a history of heart attack. b)Echocardiography :This also is a painless test wherein sound waves are used to create an image of the heart. In this test the shape and size of one’s heart is shown and information about the working of heart chambers and valves are given. The test also shows the strength of the blood flow to the different areas of the heart. A person during the test is requested to indulge in exercise to make the beating of the heart faster. c)MRI Scan :MRI scan is a very effective and safe testing procedure which uses radio waves to give elaborate picture of heart. The test also shows the moving of heart and its vessels. As per (Geddes ,2009,pg.10-15) “MRI scans could soon reveal who is at risk, avoiding the use of invasive probes that can themselves trigger heart attacks”. Treatment In current world, there is abundant reason for people to fall sick and get diseased. Among them disease cardiac arrest is one of the most prominent reason for death in developing and developed nations. The most notable reason behind cardiac problems and cardiac arrest can be connected to the diet and living style of people around the world. It is widely seen that people consuming alcohol, drugs, red meat and following sedentary life style are subjected to sudden cardiac arrests. The treatments mainly available for cardiac arrest are emergency treatment and various types of drugs and surgery. It is common practice for people to take body and health for granted as they think any extreme lifestyle practiced by them can be neutralized by body. But a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetable with proper and regular exercise is a natural treatment to avoid and cure heart problems. As the old saying goes, prevention is the best solution when it comes to the maintenance of healthy condition of heart .Cardiac arrest is a silent killer, and people often die without any prior knowledge about their unhealthy heart condition .Even though there are many tests and diagnosing procedures prevalent in medical field related to cardiac problems, the best way to avoid it is by quitting smoking, alcohol and red meat. References American Medical Association family medical guide By American Medical Association, . (2004). American medical association family medical guide . U.S.A: John Wiley & Sons Inc. Geddes, L. (2009). Mri scan to gauge heart attack risk . The new scientist, 201(2690), 10-15. Medicine Net, . (2011). Heart disease and lead extraction. Retrieved from http://www.medicinenet.com/heart_lead_extraction/article.htm Read More