Ask Dr KK:A person last week was told is executive heart check up is normal. He died next week suddenly. How can it be possible?

A: Sudden death is invariably due to heart attack which occurs after a soft vulnerable blockage in the heart artery suddenly ruptures. Treadmill test can only detect blockages of up to 70%. The blockages which are vulnerable to rupture are the ones which are less than 50%. Now days the executive health checks have no meaning as they only detect clinically evident diseases. Analysis and managing risk factors are more important than evaluation with a treadmill test. If you have risk factors you are at risk and manage them irrespective of your reports. We treat the patient and not the reports.