Experts are warning of the symptoms of a deadly silent killer that has different symptoms in women than it does in men.
Despite the fact nearly half of all people who suffer a cardiac arrest will experience symptoms 24 hours before, the telltale signs are different, a new study reveals. A cardiac arrest, when the heart stops beating, is the most deadly form of heart condition, killing 90 per cent of all those it strikes outside of a hospital.
Women will feel breathless in the day before, whereas men will feel chest pains, according to a new study from the Smidt Heart Institute at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in the US. Smaller subgroups of both genders experienced palpitations, seizure-like activity and flu-like symptoms.
Senior study author and sudden cardiac arrest expert Dr Sumeet Chugh said: “Harnessing warning symptoms to perform effective triage for those who need to make a 911 call could lead to early intervention and prevention of imminent death. Our findings could lead to a new paradigm for prevention of sudden cardiac death.”
Half of those who took part in the study, published in journal Lancet Digital Health, said they experienced a telling system in the hours before. For women, the most prominent symptom of an impending sudden cardiac arrest was shortness of breath, whereas men experienced chest pain.
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The team studied data from the ongoing Prediction of Sudden Death in Multi-Ethnic Communities (PRESTO) Study in Ventura County, California, and the Oregon Sudden Unexpected Death Study (SUDS), based in Portland, Oregon. Dr Chugh said: “It takes a village to do this work. We initiated the SUDS study 22 years ago and the PRESTO study eight years ago. These cohorts have provided invaluable lessons along the way.
"Importantly, none of this work would have been possible without the partnership and support of first responders, medical examiners and the hospital systems that deliver care within these communities.”
The investigators evaluated the prevalence of individual symptoms and sets of symptoms prior to sudden cardiac arrest, then compared these findings to control groups that also sought emergency medical care.
Another author Dr Eduardo Marbán, said: “This is the first community-based study to evaluate the association of warning symptoms, or sets of symptoms, with imminent sudden cardiac arrest using a comparison group with EMS-documented symptoms recorded as part of routine emergency care."
Such a study paves the way for additional prospective studies that will combine all symptoms with other features to enhance prediction of imminent sudden cardiac arrest. Dr Chugh added: “Next we will supplement these key sex-specific warning symptoms with additional features—such as clinical profiles and biometric measures—for improved prediction of sudden cardiac arrest."
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