From this article you will learn: what should be the correct first aid for an infarction to yourself and another person.
As in case of myocardial infarction, to provide first aid to myself
Myocardial infarction develops with a sharp restriction or cessation of blood supply of a specific siteheart muscle, which leads to the death of myocytes( heart cells).
Many patients with this disease die before admission to the hospital. According to statistical data, of all deaths from myocardial infarction, two-thirds die at the pre-hospital stage. The cause of death in most cases is the sudden occurrence of a fatal arrhythmia against the background of acute failure of the blood supply to the myocardium. Correctly provided first aid with myocardial infarction could save many of these people by doubling or even tripling their chances of survival.
The problem is that very few people without medical education know how to properly provide first aid in case of a heart attack. Widespread are various, sometimes completely absurd, recommendations that not only do not do any good, but can be dangerous because of the delay in real medical care.
Further in the article, we will discuss in detail the measures of correct assistance.
As with myocardial infarction, to provide first aid to myself
Myocardial infarction can develop anywhere and anytime. If a person is surrounded by other people at this moment, he will most likely immediately call them to the rescue. But what if he is alone?
To urgently help with myocardial infarction was rendered on time, you need to know the symptoms of this disease, to which belongs:
- A feeling of squeezing in the heart area lasting more than a few minutes.
- Pain or discomfort behind the sternum, which can spread to the left arm, shoulder or shoulder blade, into the neck or lower jaw.
- Shortness of breath.
- Cold sweat( a sign of a drop in blood pressure).
- Heartburn, nausea and vomiting.
- Dizziness, general weakness, loss of consciousness.
- Accelerated or arrhythmic heartbeat.
Pain with myocardial infarction lasts, as a rule, longer than 15 minutes. Nevertheless, some patients have an asymptomatic form of this disease, especially this is observed in patients with diabetes and the elderly.
When developing pain in the heart, a person needs:
- To sit down or lie down, to remain calm. Any physical or emotional stress can cause an increase in the heart rate and worsen the patient's condition.
- Take a nitroglycerin tablet if it has angina pectoris, and the doctor prescribed this medication to him. In other cases, you can not take nitroglycerin, as this can put life in greater danger.
- Immediately call an ambulance if pain in the heart area lasts longer than 5 minutes. The sooner this is done, the earlier the specific treatment will begin.
- Call close people and tell them about their condition.
- Remove all tight clothing.
How to provide first aid for myocardial infarction to another person
When developing symptoms of myocardial infarction in humans, people surrounding it should:
- immediately call an ambulance;
- help the patient to sit or lie down;
- loosen any tight clothes on the patient and ensure the intake of fresh air;
- to give a patient to chew an aspirin tablet if he or someone else has one( provided there is no allergy to this drug);
- ask the patient if he is taking nitroglycerin for the treatment of angina pectoris. If taking - you need to give 1 tablet.
If symptoms of myocardial infarction appear, you should immediately call an ambulance What to do when heart failure is
The most important danger of myocardial infarction is a cardiac arrest. It is in this situation that vital knowledge and skills are needed in providing emergency care.
When the heart is stopped every second is expensive, the price of any delay is a person's life. Immediate start of cardiopulmonary resuscitation can increase the survival of people with cardiac arrest 2-4 times.
Recommendations of the European Council for the Resuscitation of 2015 for Adult Heart Failure:
| Sequence of Action | Description of Actions |
|---|---|
| Safety | Make sure that the victim and the caregiver are safe. |
| Checking the consciousness of the victim | Gently touch the patient and ask: "Are you okay?" If the person answered, leave him in the same position, making sure that there is no danger, and call an ambulance. Before the ambulance arrives, do not leave the victim, ask him regularly about the condition. |
| Opening the airway | If the person has not responded, turn it to the back, place one palm on his forehead and gently tilt his head back. With the fingers of the other hand under the chin of the victim, lift his lower jaw up. Call other people. |
| Evaluation of respiration | In the first minutes after cardiac arrest a person can make rare and superficial inhalations. Do not confuse them with normal breathing. Bend to the victim's face and look at his chest, assessing the presence and nature of the breathing. If it breathes normally, turn it to the side. |
| Calling the ambulance | Call the ambulance and stay with the victim before her arrival. With assistance, you can turn on the loudspeaker on the phone and follow the instructions of the health care provider. |
| Chest compressions | If the patient does not breathe normally, after calling an ambulance, start holding a closed heart massage. To do this, sit on your knees beside the victim, place your hand on the center of your sternum, and the other on top of it. While keeping your hands in a straightened state, place your body vertically over the patient and perform chest compressions, bending the sternum about 5 cm deep. After each, let the thorax cavity straighten. The frequency of pressing is 100-120 per minute. |
| Continuation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation | Do not interrupt resuscitation before:
|
Assess the condition of the victim 
Many may notice that this algorithm does not have artificial respiration. The fact is that few people can do it correctly. Scientific evidence indicates that many people are afraid of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, so they do not want to provide first aid for cardiac arrest. That is why the recommendations of the European Council for resuscitation in 2015 advise people who have not received special training and are not able to properly carry out artificial respiration, with clinical death, only to do a closed heart massage.
Since holding a closed heart massage is a physically difficult process, if there is a possibility, people who need help need to change every 2 minutes.
First aid and prognosis for myocardial infarction
Mortality during the year from myocardial infarction ranges from 17% to 48%, depending on the severity of the disease.
Myocardial infarction can lead to immediate death, cause severe chronic illness or result in almost complete recovery. The long-term prognosis regarding the duration and quality of life after a heart attack depends on its severity, degree of myocardial damage and timeliness of treatment.
As two-thirds of the deaths from infarction of patients die before arriving at the hospital, properly provided first aid in case of a heart attack can not only save the life of a sick person, but also improve its long-term prognosis and quality of life. This is confirmed by scientific studies that demonstrated that quality emergency care can increase the chances of survival in case of cardiac arrest due to myocardial infarction 2-3 times.
