Responding to a heart attack
Responding to a heart attack
Dr. Eric White explains the process from ER to Cath Lab.
Content
0.06 -> An MI is a myocardial infarction which
is also known as a heart attack which is
4.35 -> how most people know it. The heart's like
an engine, and it's got three fuel lines,
8.73 -> and what a heart attack is is when
suddenly one of those fuel lines shuts
12.54 -> down. So what the artery gets blocked
with is cholesterol plaque. When you lack
17.46 -> blood supply to your heart muscle, which
is what a heart attack is, there's a clock
21.93 -> that's started, and after about six hours, a
great majority of permanent heart
26.4 -> muscle damage has been done, and
after 12 hours it's probably completed--
30.9 -> --so the quicker we open up that artery,
the less permanent heart muscle damage
35.25 -> is done. When the artery shuts down
suddenly, there's a time where the heart
40.2 -> doesn't have any blood supply, and it's
in jeopardy of going into a fatal
44.28 -> arrhythmia. Paramedics are trained to
treat that arrhythmia.
47.969 -> So if you call 9-1-1 and have that
arrhythmia while the paramedics are
51.809 -> there, they can save your life, but if you
try to drive yourself in and have that
55.89 -> arrhythmia, you would die. So it's
essential that you call 911. When they arrive
61.32 -> at your house, they'll do an EKG. If that
EKG is suspicious that you are having a
66.869 -> heart attack,
they will notify the emergency room.
70.409 -> The emergency room will then activate a
pathway so we will be prepared for you
75.03 -> when you come to the emergency room. When
we see the patient in the emergency room,
79.11 -> the first thing we need to determine is,
obviously, are you having a heart attack?
82.5 -> That's usually evident based on the
symptoms and the EKG. Once we've
87.81 -> determined you're having a heart attack,
we're focused on getting that artery
91.079 -> open as fast as we can. A pathway will be
initiated where we'll move quickly to go
96.57 -> from the emergency room to the heart
catheterization laboratory where we can
101.369 -> open up the artery immediately. The
quicker your artery is opened up, the less
105.81 -> heart muscle damage is done. What's
good about the Parkview system is that
110.369 -> there's a cardiologist available 24
hours a day, every day of the week, in the
116.49 -> hospital, waiting for somebody to come in
with a heart attack. There's a huge team-
121.2 -> approach that's required to coordinate
the care--from when somebody's having a
125.13 -> heart attack in the field to getting
their artery opened up. The more time you
129.569 -> wait with an artery that's shut down,
the more likely you are to either die or
134.13 -> have permanent disability. So it's very
important if you think you're having a
138.03 -> heart attack not to stay at home but to
summon emergency care.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qpje30r7wYo