Heart attack is often the first manifestation of heart disease in young

Anant Bajaj, MD of Bajaj Electricals dies at 41

Anant Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Electricals, passed away on Friday after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was only 41.

Coronary heart disease mainly occurs in patients over the age of 40, but younger men and women can be affected. An age cut-off of 40 to 45 years has been used in many studies to define “young” patients with heart disease or acute heart attack.

In the Framingham Heart Study, the incidence of a heart attack over a 10-year follow-up was 12.9/1000 in men 30 to 34 years old and 5.2/1000 in women 35 to 44 years old. The incidence of heart attack was eight to nine times greater in men and women aged 55 to 64 years. In other studies, 4 to 10 percent of patients with myocardial infarction were ≤40 or 45 years of age.

Although heart attacks are uncommon in young patients, yet they pose an important problem for the patient as well as the treating physician because of the devastating effect of this disease on the more active lifestyle of young patients.

Younger patients with heart disease more often have a family history of premature heart disease.

The most common and most modifiable risk factor in young patients is cigarette smoking. Cocaine use, factor V Leiden and oral contraceptive (females) use are other risk factors that are more common in younger individuals. Diabetes and hypertension are less common in young patients with heart disease in comparison to older patients.

The clinical presentation of heart disease in younger patients differs from that in older patients. A higher proportion of young patients do not experience chest pain and often heart attack is the first manifestation of heart disease. Younger patients have a higher incidence of normal coronary arteries, mild luminal irregularities, and single vessel blockage than do older patients.

Mantras

lIf you can walk 500 meters in six minutes, you do not have significant underlying heart disease.

lEveryone should learn the life saving technique of hands-only CPR.

Dr KK Aggarwal

Padma Shri Awardee

Vice President CMAAO

Group Editor-in-Chief IJCP Publications

President Heart Care Foundation of India

Immediate Past National President IMA