Page 8 - Healthcare News Jan/Feb 2022

FAfter the Initial Crisis
How to Survive Heart Disease Following a Heart Attack or Surgery
eeling sad, anxious, or depressed gery are 96% to 97%. That’s good news for better outcomes. Now that advice applies after having a heart attack or heart patients. But that doesn’t mean they can go to not only heart-attack patients, but for surgery is normal, and so is wor- back to their normal ways as before without those who have undergone heart surgery
rying that you might have another heart some healthy lifestyle changes. and even others with heart failure,” said
community to shines a spotlight on heart disease, the number-one killer of Ameri- cans, encouraging people to focus on their cardiovascular health and address their risk factors for the disease.
“Cardiac rehabilitation programs, such as those offered at Baystate Health, are the pillar of recovery and are critical to regain- ing function and optimal health, as well as reducing the risk of another heart attack or other cardiovascular problems,” Pack added.
While he noted that some people may be nervous about resuming exercise or activity after having a life-changing cardiovascular event, cardiac-rehabilitation exercise is held in a medically safe environment where heart-attack, surgical, and congestive heart- failure patients, under close supervision of cardiac-health professionals, can discover what their limitations are and what they can do to alleviate their fears.
“Getting started on a walking program right after hospital discharge is a good first step,” Pack said.
Start slow, but be sure to actually get moving, as too much bed rest can be harm- ful. When not in cardiac rehab, patients are encouraged to exercise at home, with the goal to get 150 minutes of exercise each week and 7,000 steps each day.
Survival is a lifelong process, Pack noted. “I once had a patient who was hospital- ized after his second heart attack. After his first heart attack and bypass surgery, he thought he was ‘fixed’ and so did nothing else for his own health, including taking recommended mediations. Unfortunately, his bypass surgery only lasted three years, when it should have lasted 10 to 15 years. Coronary disease is a chronic illness and requires continuous attention throughout your life.
“You will need to partner with your phy- sician and listen carefully to advice given,” he went on. “Many of your risk factors will need to be addressed to improve your heart health after a heart attack or heart surgery. We have good treatments and medications to manage almost all of these risk factors and improve your quality of life. It’s all about lifestyle changes.”
The Baystate cardiologist noted that a doctor may prescribe statin medications to lower cholesterol and others to control high blood pressure and diabetes for those with high sugars; recommend working with a dietitian to eat healthier, quitting smoking, and losing weight if obese; and offer advice on managing stress, which can lead to high blood pressure and increase one’s risk for another heart attack or even
Please see Heart, page 35
attack.
It’s a fact that 90% of people survive a
heart attack, and according to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, survival rates one year after open-heart sur-
“Back in the 1950s, four to six weeks of bed rest was recommended for heart-attack patients. Soon after, contrary evidence was presented that getting a patient out of bed to walk and exercise right away offered
Dr. Quinn Pack, preventive cardiologist in the Heart & Vascular Program at Baystate Health.
He shared these thoughts during Ameri- can Heart Month, a time when the medical
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8 WWW.HEALTHCARENEWS.COM JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022