Difference Between Cardiac Arrest and Heart Attack in Indian Patients

Although cardiac arrests and heart attacks are severe heart conditions, they are not synonymous with each other.

To get a clear perspective of the difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack, we should begin by looking at what each term means.

What Is a Heart Attack?

A heart attack occurs when the arteries that pump blood to the heart are blocked due to fat or cholesterol deposits. The fat deposits accumulate over time to form plaques in the arterial walls. A plaque can cause blockage in any of the arteries supplying blood to the heart (also known as coronary arteries) and this can exert strain on the heart muscles.

The heart needs blood which contains oxygen for its appropriate functioning, just as any other human organ. The impure blood, i.e., oxygen-less blood enters the right part of the heart and later goes to the lungs for purification. The oxygen-rich purified blood goes to the left side of the heart and is pumped to all parts of the body.

When an artery supplying blood to the heart is blocked, there is a prolonged lack of oxygen supply, which may cause severe tissue damage, thus leading to a heart attack. People who get a heart attack are immediately rushed to the hospital to restart oxygen-rich blood flow to the heart. The faster this is done, the lesser the damage. Emergency procedures include placing of stents in blocked arteries, bypass surgery, or both to remove the blockage.

What Is Cardiac Arrest?

When a cardiac arrest happens, the heart stops beating suddenly and often unexpectedly. It is a severe condition, in which the person might turn unconscious and unresponsive. They will need on-the-spot CPR(Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation) and have to be rushed to the hospital immediately, without wasting any time.

The difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack lies in the way the functioning of the heart is affected. The muscle tissue of the heart is controlled by an electric conducting system that monitors the pumping and coordination of its various chambers. Any change in the electrical impulses causes irregularity of the heartbeats’ rhythm. This irregularity is called arrhythmia.

Cardiac arrests can be fatal as the body cannot function without the heart beating steadily.

Can a Heart Attack Cause Cardiac Arrest?

The main link between cardiac arrest and heart attack is that a heart attack has the potential to lead to cardiac arrest if not treated in time – however, this does not necessarily happen all the time.

If the blockage in the arteries of the heart is severe, or more than one tube is blocked, the decrease in regular blood flow to the heart could cause it to stop beating and result in a cardiac arrest.

On the other hand, cardiac arrest stops the beating heart, which prevents any blood flow to or from the heart, thus leading to multiple organ damage due to a massive shortage of oxygen-rich blood. More often than not, when a cardiac arrest occurs, a heart attack generally follows.

Who Is At Risk for Heart Diseases?

Generally, heart diseases are seen in people who are older. However, a variety of factors could cause anyone irrespective of age to fall victim to them.

An individual’s overall health, family history of cardiovascular diseases, and lifestyle can have an impact on how prone he/she is to heart issues.

Risk Factors for Heart Diseases

Common risk factors that could lead to heart diseases are:

Heart diseases are serious health conditions and need to be treated with haste to increase the chances of recovery.

There are differences between heart attack and cardiac arrest. But both of these diseases can be treated if the symptoms are identified quickly.

Symptoms of Heart Attack

Heart attacks present very differently in both men and women. Sudden heart attack symptoms in women could sometimes be confused with heartburn or anxiety and be misdiagnosed. Hence, it is important to be wary of symptoms of a heart attack in order to detect the signs early.

Symptoms of Cardiac Arrest

There are a number of events leading to a cardiac arrest. Cardiac arrests need to be treated as soon as possible to prevent them from turning fatal. So what does a cardiac arrest feel like? Knowing the symptoms can help prepare for the next steps. It is important to note that cardiac arrest symptoms in female need not necessarily differ from symptoms in males like in heart attacks.

A few symptoms of cardiac arrest include,

According to a study by the Lancet, smoking is one of the biggest causes of heart attacks in India

Regardless of the difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack, you need to identify the causes to treat them accurately. This can help you take several preventive measures that could prove to be life-saving.

Causes of Heart Attacks

Fat or cholesterol Build-Up / Atherosclerosis

The walls of arteries harden up when deposits consisting of fat or cholesterol, that is plaque, stick to them. This condition is called Atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis is one of the common causes of sudden heart attacks in Indian patients. If left unchecked, the plaque becomes unstable and starts blocking the arteries partially or fully, which reduces the space required for blood to travel in the blood vessels. If these blockages occur in blood vessels supplying the heart, the amount of blood supply required for the normal functioning of the heart reduces, leading to a heart attack.

Atherosclerosis is a common condition that happens as an individual grows old. Build up of plaques are primarily what causes a sudden heart attack as they eventually block the blood vessels limiting the supply of blood to the heart.

Coronary Heart Diseases

The fat that builds up in the arteries and blood vessels damages them over time. The blockage causes the individual to be susceptible to coronary heart diseases. Coronary heart diseases are also one of the major causes of sudden heart attacks. It is difficult to predict when coronary heart disease occurs, and it is the result of damage to the heart caused over a long time period. Risk factors for coronary heart disease include age and hypertension. It also is a possible cause for silent heart attacks or silent cardiac arrests.

Hypothermia

Prolonged exposure to cold conditions or being exposed in cold water can lead to hypothermia, a condition where the body’s temperature falls to below 34 C or 95 F. Hypothermia causes electrical dysfunction in the heart and also affects other major systems in the body. This impacts the heart and could lead to heart attacks and sudden death if left untreated.

Substance Abuse & Alcohol

Excess alcohol consumption instigates the production of LDL, which is bad cholesterol. The decrease in blood circulation in the body due to the blockage is what causes a sudden heart attack. The damage caused by the unrestricted use of drugs and alcohol can even lead to heart attacks in healthy people if they do not abstain from these habits.

Smoking

A cigarette is mainly composed of nicotine, which on long term exposure, causes hypertension and other severe diseases. This can increase a person’s risk of heart disease.

Causes of Cardiac Arrest

Even with the emergence of medical innovations, it is still challenging to treat cardiac arrests. However, if the base cause of cardiac arrests can be identified beforehand, the mortality rate is likely to reduce significantly.

Heart Attacks

One of the better-known causes of cardiac arrest remains a sudden heart attack. When the blood flow is compromised, the heart starts beating sluggishly. It also affects the brain, thereby impacting the normal functioning of all organs in the body.

Previous Heart Problems

Any pre-existing heart conditions already weaken the heart. A weakened heart can be more heavily impacted by a cardiac arrest than an otherwise healthy heart. A cardiac arrest is due to a malfunction in the electrical system running the heart. The cause of such a malfunction can be traced to any existing condition like arrhythmia, which causes irregularities in the heartbeat.

Scarring of Heart Tissue

Scars on heart tissue could exist due to surgical procedures aimed at repairing the heart. Too much scarring on the muscles of the heart could compromise the ventricles and disrupt the smooth functioning of the organ.

Cardiomyopathy

Cardiomyopathy is a condition where the heart becomes larger or more rigid. The heart tends to become weaker over time, impairing its ability to pump blood and follow a regular heartbeat. Without proper evaluation by medical professionals, cardiomyopathy could cause a cardiac arrest or arrhythmia.

Heart Medications

Heart medications are prescribed to allow the heart to work properly after a heart attack, arrhythmia, or hypertension. However, in some cases, these medications could actually result in a cardiac arrest or arrhythmia.

Electrical Abnormalities

Electrical abnormalities of the heart like the Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome and the Long QT syndrome affect how the electrical impulses travel within the heart. Any misdirection or error in the functioning of the impulses could lead to cardiac arrest.

Blood Vessel Abnormalities

Blockages, especially in major vessels like the aorta or coronary arteries can lead to a cardiac arrest. If these underlying conditions are already there, the sudden release of adrenaline due to physical activity could serve as a trigger.

Ventricular Fibrillation

The heart is a muscle comprised of atriums and ventricles. Ventricular fibrillation causes the heart muscles to quiver instead of beating regularly. The quivering disrupts the normal pumping of the blood vessels and could trigger the heart to go into massive cardiac arrest. A cardiac arrest due to this condition is preceded by loss of consciousness followed by no palpable pulse.

Witnessing someone experience a heart attack or a cardiac arrest can be very overwhelming. What’s worse is to feel helpless and to not know how to react. It is of utmost importance to learn basic first aid to save a life during such an occurrence. Read on to learn how you can save someone’s life by acting quickly.

Warning signs of a heart attack:

A person experiencing a heart attack can have any or all of the following symptoms:

• Sudden, sharp pain or pressure in the center of the chest
• Shortness of breath
• Pain spreading through the upper body (arms, shoulders, back, neck)
• Sweating
• Nausea
• Heart palpitations
• Dizziness or fainting
• Extreme fatigue

Warning signs of a cardiac arrest:

• Loss of consciousness
• Lack of pulse
• Lack of breathing
• Sudden collapse

What to do?

For a conscious patient:

• Ensure that the patient sits in a comfortable position. Sitting on the floor against a wall with head and shoulders supported is an ideal position.
• Loosen the patient’s clothing around their neck and chest. Unbutton the collar and remove the tie, if they’re wearing one.
• Don’t let people crowd around the patient.
• Immediately call up the local hospital for an ambulance. If you have a vehicle, drive the patient to the hospital.
• If the patient has already been prescribed with heart-related medications, help them take it.
• Monitor their consciousness. Don’t leave the patient unattended.

For an unconscious patient:

• Immediately inform the ambulance about the state of the patient. They will bring in equipment like a defibrillator, ECG machine, oxygen cylinder if needed.
• You may be advised to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
• If you are not CPR-trained, provide chest compressions for the patient. You will be assisted by a specialist on call to perform them.

The following CPR steps can be followed till a medical professional arrives:

Step 1: Lay the person flat on their back

Step 2: Tilt the chin slightly and check for signs of breathing. If there is no breathing for 10 seconds, start chest compressions

Step 3: Lay your hands one over the other in the middle of their chest and press 2 inches deep at a pace of 100 beats per minute

Step 4: After 30 compressions, deliver two rescue breaths. Pinch the nose, tilt the head back and place your nose over the person’s open mouth. Blow into their mouth till their chest rises. Do this twice before resuming compressions.

The average age for an individual to be susceptible to any cardiovascular disease is 65; in India, the age is lower. In recent times, heart diseases are affecting people below the age of 45 too.

Lifestyle changes, environmental changes, and many other factors have increased the mortality rates within two decades.

In India, the heart disease mortality rate was 23.2 million in 1990, which shot up to 37 million in 2010.

As such, the best way to delay or negate heart diseases is by maintaining healthy habits.

Treating a heart attack or cardiac arrest:

Immediate treatment:

• CPR: A cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR is an emergency procedure to help preserve brain function in the affected person. It is done by fast chest compressions and breathing into the mouth of a person who is unconscious. This is performed until further medical assistance is provided in the hope to restart the heart.
• Defibrillator:This machine sends high-energy shock waves to the heart if the heartbeats are too slow, uneven, or have stopped completely.
• Drug therapy:Drug therapy is performed to prevent the blood from clotting, and prevent collecting and sticking of platelets to the plaque in an attempt to stop further blockage of arteries.

Medications that are vital during a heart attack include:

• Aspirin/ Antiplatelet drugs: Prevents the formation of blood clots. Blood clotting occurs when platelets (blood-clotting cells) build-up at a site. This can happen within the vessels that supply your heart with blood. If your blood vessels are narrowed, you are more prone to internal blood clots. The formation of a clot can block your artery and cause a heart attack.
  Taking aspirin or other anti-platelet drugs can reduce the build-up of platelets, thereby preventing an attack.
• Thrombolytic therapy: Dissolves the blood clots in your heart’s arteries. Statins will be prescribed to reduce the lipid or cholesterol levels, thereby preventing further plaque formation.
  A combination of these drugs or other drugs is given during or after your heart attack to help your heart function better, widen blood vessels, reduce the pain, and avoid the risk of future heart damage.
• Surgical treatment: In severe cases where the issue cannot be treated through medication alone, surgical procedures will be required to address the problem. Two major procedures often used in the treatment of a heart attack are stent surgery and bypass. A stent (a small tube) can be inserted into blocked vessels to improve the flow of blood. A coronary bypass surgery, on the other hand, bypasses blocked sections of blood vessels. Healthy vessels from other parts of the body are used to help improve the flow of blood and avoid the blockages.

Life after a heart attack:

Most people live a long life after a heart attack. However, the risk of another attack increases if the patients are older. Prevention needs to be the first priority. Here is a list of things one needs to keep in mind to have a healthy heart.

• Manage your medications: It is very important for you to understand your medicines and take them as prescribed and on time, without missing doses.
• Attend regular check-ups: Regularly following-up with your cardiologist will help you keep track of your condition and recovery process. Ensure that you’re well-prepared before each appointment.
• Lead a healthy lifestyle: Making healthy lifestyle changes is vital after a cardiac arrest or a heart attack. Ensure that you have a balanced diet and perform regular, prescribed physical activity to avoid any risk of future complications.
• Manage your risk factors: If you are also diagnosed with other chronic conditions like diabetes or high cholesterol, make sure that you treat these simultaneously. Bringing these diseases under control can impact your heart health in a positive way.

Tips to Maintain a Healthy Heart

Risk factors for heart diseases like age and genetics are unavoidable. However, some preventable actions can be taken with some risks that drastically lowers the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases.

Diet Recommendations for a Healthy Heart

You can include a few specific food items into your regular diet that can provide maximum nourishment for the body.

Q1. How long can you live after suffering from a heart attack?

This depends upon the severity of the heart attack and whether a person has had a heart attack previously. Consulting with a cardiologist on medical, diet and lifestyle changes can greatly improve life expectancy after a heart attack.

Q2. How are symptoms of heart attack different for women?

Symptoms of heart attack are different in men and women. Women might experience shortness of breath, a squeezing sensation in their chest and pain in the jaw, neck and back. Unlike in men, women can experience a heart attack without chest pain.

Q3. Can you recover from cardiac arrest?

Cardiac arrest is a sudden stop to the beating of the heart. This can affect various organs of the body since there is a lack of blood supplied to them. This results in a loss of consciousness.

Since massive cardiac arrests impact neurological and respiratory function, the chances of survival are slim. The survival rate from a cardiac arrest increases significantly with prompt CPR and hospital admission.

Q4. Can stress cause heart disease?

In recent times, stress has increased in the younger generation. Stress about work, stress about health, stress about children’s education—there seems to be no end to it. However, stress management is an important life skill.

Stress produces the hormone cortisol, which gives the body energy to go about any activity. But a huge amount of cortisol over a long period of time is detrimental to the body as it may increase your blood sugar levels and cause hypertension, which ultimately may result in heart disease.

Q5. Is CPR effective against a heart attack or cardiac arrest?

CPR or Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation is a manual procedure done to keep the blood flowing and restart the heart.

In CPR, the heart is manually pumped by pressing down on the chest. The person performing the procedure blows air into the affected individuals’ lungs in tandem with the manual pumping. This is a first-aid procedure that, when performed correctly, can help in preventing death due to heart attacks or cardiac arrests.

What is the difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack? Is there any difference between myocardial infarction and cardiac arrest?

Myocardial infarction (sometimes confused with a silent cardiac arrest) is simply the scientific name for heart attacks. There is a significant difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack.

Heart attacks differ from cardiac arrests because, in a heart attack, the arteries are blocked wholly or partially, making it difficult for the heart to function. In contrast, a cardiac arrest is an electrical problem where the system that controls the overall functioning of all cardiovascular activities undergoes a glitch.

Q7. Can I prevent a heart attack?

It’s difficult to predict the occurrence of a heart attack unless you understand all the risk factors. While risk factors like age and genetics are out of your control, you can avoid heart attacks by making lifestyle changes.

Habits like smoking and drinking excessive alcohol can be stopped for a healthy way of life. Managing weight has to become a priority as being overweight and eating unhealthy food increases the risk of a massive heart attack and death.

Q8. Even if there is no risk of heart disease, should a checkup still be done?

The risk of heart diseases will undoubtedly increase with age. Even if there is no risk, it is better to get a yearly checkup done that rules out any degeneration in the functioning of the heart.

An annual exam includes checking blood pressure levels, performing an ECG (EchoCardiogram) and other tests on overall health. The tests may also include a risk assessment based on which follow up exams would be scheduled.

Conclusion

It is important to not only understand the difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack but also that there is a clear link between the two. Although the causes are varied, the aftermath of one heart condition can trigger the other.

Understanding the underlying risks and keeping yourself medically informed is the way to avoid heart diseases.

And even with these measures, if a heart attack or cardiac arrest does occur, being vigilant about the signs and quick action can help in preventing severe consequences.