Heart Attack - Causes, Symptoms, Health Insurance Coverage

​What Is Heart Attack?

Someone haves a heart attack when their heart is not getting enough oxygen due to the blockage that doesn't allow the flow of blood. Death due to cardiovascular disease is very common in India. Another name of heart attack is Myocardial Infarctions which means the death of muscle tissue due to the lack of blood supply.

Symptoms

Symptoms that might lead to having a heart attack is mentioned below:

• Pressure, discomfort, heaviness, squeezing, tightness, or pain in your left arm, chest, or below your breastbone.
• Uneven or fast heartbeat
• Discomfort in your back, arm, or throat
• Anxiety, weakness, shortness of breath, or fatigue
• Sense of fullness, the feeling of getting choked, indigestion, heartburn
• Dizziness, upset stomach, sweating, or vomiting

Symptoms differ from person to person. Women more commonly show symptoms like shortness of breath, an upset stomach, or jaw or back pain. If you are facing any of the above-mentioned symptoms, make sure you consult your doctor immediately. ​

​Diagnosis

To provide with proper treatment, your doctor will ask you to go through the following mentioned tests:

• ECG/EKG/Electrocardiogram: ECG shows how much muscle of your heart is damaged, and it also shows the heart rate.
• Blood tests: When heart cells are damaged, their content including enzymes mixes into the bloodstream. These blood tests measure the levels of enzymes in your blood. This will help the doctor in finding out how severe was the heart attack.
• Echocardiography: This test is done to see how the heart is pumping, what areas are not working properly.
• Cardiac Catheterization/ Cardiac Cath: This test is required during the first few hours of the heart attack if medications are not working properly. It provides an image of a blocked artery. It also helps in the opening of blocked or narrowed arteries.

Treatment

Once you are inside the emergency room or even in the ambulance, treatment begins right away. Taking some drugs will break blood clots, widen the blood vessels, will stabilize the plaque, lower your pain, and much more. These medications are:

• Aspirin prevents blood from getting a clot.
• Antiplatelet drugs like prasugrel, clopidogrel, ticagrelor
• Thrombolytic therapy

Bypass surgery is another way of treatment. You must have heard of this surgery a million times. This surgery helps in the restoration of the blood supply to your heart.

​Health Insurance

Cardiovascular diseases are the number one cause of death in our country. The treatment is available, but its costs are skyrocketing. Suffering from health issues is not only physically taxing but can also drain you financially. Therefore, it is advised to buy health insurance policy which will provide financial coverage that can take care of medical expenses and hospitalization bills. It takes care of pre and post hospitalization bills. If you buy health insurance, you will not only get the cashless treatment from a network hospital where the bill is directly settled by your insurance provider with the hospital but will also enjoy tax benefits under section 80D of Income Tax Act, 1961. Make sure to know your policy details and covers before purchasing a health insurance policy.​