Participants: James Marcum & Danny Miller
Series Code: WM
Program Code: WM000382
00:35 "Praise God for I am fearfully and wonderfully made!"
00:38 That's what the psalmist, David, exclaimed... 00:42 Welcome to "Wonderfully Made" 00:45 I'm Dr. Jim Marcum 00:46 I'm glad you're taking time out of your busy schedule 00:48 to be here with us. 00:49 Today we have a very important topic that affects almost 00:52 everyone in the United States 00:55 The rates of heart disease, heart attacks, 00:57 and complicated problems are going UP 00:59 You would not believe how many people are affected 01:01 by this topic every day. 01:03 We're going to be talking about "when the heart attacks today" 01:06 I'm so glad to have with me as my guest, Daniel Miller. 01:09 Dan, thank you for being here... 01:10 Thank you, Jim, nice to be here. 01:13 Well tell me a little bit about "Heartwise Ministries" 01:16 Heartwise Ministries is a ministry that has been created 01:21 or naturally come out of the books that you've produced 01:26 It's a ministry that has been created to introduce 01:32 a different train of thought, or line of thinking 01:35 into the health and spiritual ministry area. 01:39 So it's with health and it's going into the 01:42 spiritual side... Correct... 01:44 So we're sort of marrying the 2 01:46 together that gives better understanding... Right 01:47 Well that's great. 01:49 Our topic today is we're going to talk about a heart attack 01:52 and I understand we've collected questions from 01:54 all over the world regarding this tough topic. 01:58 We have, but before we get into that... 02:00 I've got kind of a snippet... 02:02 I've read some information and got some statistics 02:05 that are kind of interesting and I thought you might be 02:08 interested in it. 02:10 In the United States, every year, we spend 02:15 as Americans, 2.2 trillion dollars on healthcare per year 02:20 2.2 Wow! That's an amazing amount to me 02:23 In 2006 alone, we had an estimated 900,000 heart attacks 02:30 That's almost a million heart attacks a year 02:32 and we only have 300 million people here. Right... 02:34 So, you know, you've got 900,000 total 02:39 ...break it down, you've got 600,000 new heart attacks 02:44 300,000 of those are either 2nd, 3rd or 4th heart attack 02:49 So it's a situation where once you have the 1st heart attack, 02:53 it seems like it's still being repeated past that point 02:59 Out of this number, 42% died. 42%? 03:06 That's within about the first year, right? Right 03:09 Wow, that's an amazing number. 03:11 I mean, it really is staggering when you think of it... 03:13 just think... how big is your town? 03:18 Around the world, and this is another little bit of 03:19 information.. Around the world, 13 million people die 03:23 of cardiac disease very year. 13 million... wow 03:27 That's several large towns rolled into one... 03:29 Yeah, it's just an amazing number. 03:31 During the first half of the 21st century, 03:34 we're going to be looking at 1 billion deaths from 03:38 heart-related conditions. 03:39 I've heard that, and actually the prevalence every year 03:42 you know, is going up. Right 03:44 So this is a really important topic, 03:46 and I'm hoping that everyone out there that's listening 03:49 is going to tune-in because we don't want you to have 03:52 a heart attack, and we want you to 03:54 know a lot more about this subject. 03:56 It seems like it's an epidemic. 03:57 And I don't hear as much about heart disease, 04:00 as some other more trendy disease... Right 04:02 And just some of these statistics are why 04:06 Heartwise Ministries has been created. 04:08 Wow, well that's great... It's kind of interesting. 04:11 What we generally do when we get together 04:13 is take questions from people around the world basically. Okay 04:17 And we answer their questions. Okay... 04:21 And we try to give them an unbiased answer... Correct 04:25 Okay, well good... Let's go to some of these questions. 04:27 Okay, #1, "I'm a 50-year-old female with a family history 04:32 of both heart disease, and breast cancer" 04:34 Both parents suffered heart attacks in their 50s 04:37 "I worry about my health all the time" 04:40 "Someone told me my risk of having heart disease was 04:43 MUCH greater than breast cancer" 04:46 "Which is the greater risk?" 04:49 Okay, and that was from Chris, in Rome, Georgia 04:54 Well Chris, through the years, cancer has scared people 05:00 dramatically, and as it should... 05:03 But the prevalence's of heart disease, 05:05 cardiovascular disease, which includes heart attacks, 05:09 strokes, heart failure, 05:11 the funny heartbeats called "arrhythmias" 05:13 these have been increasing at far greater rate... 05:16 In fact, in women, the chance of having 05:19 heart-related disease is 05:21 GREATER than ALL of the diseases COMBINED! 05:24 Any disease that a female might have... 05:26 HEART DISEASE is far greater than all of them... 05:29 And if you look at the prevalences, 05:30 this is a major problem in America today... 05:32 we just NOT talking enough about this. 05:34 Are you telling me that that's a myth... 05:36 Why is it that the general public believes other than that? 05:41 Well, I think that, for females, breast cancer is a scary thing 05:46 ...it's very personal 05:47 It affects their whole, you know their figure... 05:50 It affects the way they look. 05:52 We heard a lot about this through the years... 05:54 and, so breast cancer awareness is very high. 05:56 And what we're trying to do is, 05:58 based on the numbers and statistics, let people know 06:01 that, no... we need to ALSO... 06:02 Now, you know, I'm not saying we should not focus on 06:05 breast cancer, but we also need to focus on the treatment, 06:09 prevention and awareness of cardiovascular disease... 06:12 Does it help Chris, to worry about the situation? 06:14 No it does not help to worry about this, 06:16 but it does help to be aware... 06:18 Because when you start being aware that there's a problem... 06:20 a lot of people out there think that they're not 06:22 even at risk of having a heart attack. 06:24 Those are the people we want to REACH the most. 06:27 And in this show and in the next show, 06:29 we're really going to talk about people... 06:31 What can I do right now in my life that may prevent 06:35 ME from having heart attack, 06:36 and being another one of these statistics. 06:38 You know, every day I hear about someone that 06:41 falls over suddenly from a heart attack... 06:43 whether it be an athlete, or a personal friend, 06:45 and we can stop this if we... there are ways to correct that 06:50 ...90% of heart attacks are preventable... 90% 06:54 and only 10% are purely genetics. 06:56 Well I have heard that 90% of most cardio-disease 07:00 is acquired... which is basically putting it back in our 07:04 court as far as our producing that problem. 07:09 So, Chris, I want to get back to your question... 07:11 As far as which is the greater risk, 07:13 ...Your risk from dying of heart disease is greater 07:17 than you dying of breast cancer... 07:18 in general, if there's no family history... Right 07:22 That's a good question. 07:23 All right, our 2nd question comes from 07:25 Ray in Flint, Michigan. 07:28 "The other day, while at work, 07:29 I had a funny feeling in my chest; this occurred after 07:33 I ate lunch but lasted for several hours. " 07:37 "Could I have had a heart attack?" 07:39 You know, Jim, my first thought that goes through my brain is 07:44 ...Where did you eat lunch, Ray? 07:45 ...Was it, you know, like at Taco Bell? 07:47 Oh yeah, Ray, I mean you got some bad food... 07:50 Ray could have gotten... You never know... too many chips 07:54 I hate to digress, but 07:56 right now, Ray, we're going to digress a second... 07:58 Did you know that 80 million people eat fast food every day. 08:02 Ray, you could have had some indigestion, no doubt about that 08:06 But you ALSO could have had a heart attack... 08:08 And that brings up... A lot of people don't even know 08:11 what symptoms of a heart attack are... 08:13 Dan, do you know what the symptoms of a 08:14 heart attack would be? 08:15 I would assume tightness of chest... Yes 08:18 Pain radiating down your left arm. Um hm 08:25 Shortness of breath. That's right 08:26 Not able to take a deep breath 08:31 I would assume would be one of the symptoms. Yeah 08:34 Pain in the back... 08:35 Well, you're doing pretty good with this, Dan 08:37 You must have been coached a little bit.. Taking a shot at it 08:39 Well anyway, Ray, any abnormal symptom that goes on 08:44 for a prolonged period of time... 08:45 And I've seen just about everything at practicing as a 08:49 cardiologist... from chest pain, to chest comfort, 08:52 to numbness in either arm, to an indigestion-like feeling, 08:55 to sudden shortness of breath, 08:57 to becoming overly fatigued, and tired... 08:59 But any prolonged symptom basically above the waist 09:03 COULD be a heart attack. 09:05 And you know, I almost always... 09:07 People will tell me when they're having a heart attack 09:09 most definitely... they think something is not right. 09:12 Now the older people, and diabetics have very 09:15 atypical symptoms... 09:16 Now when I say "atypical," everyone thinks... 09:18 "Oh, if I'm not having chest pain, 09:20 I can't be having a heart attack. " 09:22 But this indigestion, Ray, you know, 09:23 it might have been true indigestion, 09:25 or you might have been having a heart attack. 09:27 So any prolonged symptom that goes on for several hours 09:31 ...that's unexplained, if I were you, Ray, 09:34 I would get it checked out. 09:36 Now after you ate lunch, that could have been... acid reflux 09:41 ...yeah, it could have been indigestion 09:42 You know, I have some people that just pass gas... 09:44 and then it just sort of gets caught in there 09:47 for a long time, and they don't know why... 09:48 But I would still, with these statistics, 09:50 I would want to make sure I'm not having a heart attack. 09:55 Maybe Ray should pack his lunch next time... 09:58 just pack a lunch and not worry about it. 10:01 Let's go to question #3... from Dave in Idaho 10:04 Dave writes in and he says, "Is it possible to have a 10:08 heart attack without any cholesterol blockages?" 10:11 "My buddy and I were talking about basketball players 10:14 who have died suddenly. " 10:15 "Also, is there a test to tell WHO will suffer a heart attack?" 10:20 You know, this kind of goes on all the time... 10:23 We hear of football, basketball, a lot of young people 10:27 having problems like this... Right 10:29 Dying on the field... Is there anything that... 10:34 Yeah, let's sort of break Dave's question into 3 parts 10:38 Dave, the first thing is... 10:39 Is it possible to have a heart attack without any cholesterol 10:43 blockages? 10:44 The answer to that question is "Yes" 10:46 What would be some of the reasons that would lead to that? 10:49 The most common reason that we have... 10:51 when there are no blockages, is a spasm. 10:54 Let me just back up and for our audience, 10:56 the most common way we have a heart attack is 10:59 we have the small cholesterol plaque 11:02 usually less than 50% in diameter, 11:04 that ruptures. Right 11:06 And, Dan, if I cut you here, what would you do with your skin 11:10 Start to bleed. Right, you'd start to bleed, 11:12 but then sooner or later, you'd start to clot off... Right 11:15 Well, when a cholesterol plaque ruptures, 11:17 that process is going on in the artery of the heart. 11:20 Okay, so it's interior. Right 11:21 And sooner or later, you've got that clot... 11:23 no blood goes out... that has a heart attack. 11:25 Most heart attacks are like that 11:27 Even in young people now, they're starting to 11:29 get these plaques. 11:31 Now, what would be the reason for that? 11:34 Is it because they don't eat properly? Exercise? Yes 11:37 It's usually they don't eat well... 11:39 their diets... hypertension, diabetes, all these things 11:42 that can contribute to that. Right 11:44 So that's the most common cause. 11:46 Another type of heart attack is when the arteries just 11:48 gradually builds up with cholesterol until they're just 11:51 all clogged up. 11:53 But in the young people, sometimes we have this 11:55 phenomenon called "spasm" 11:57 That's where the artery shuts down, no blood goes through... 12:00 you have a heart attack! 12:01 Which people are at higher risk for that? 12:04 If you remember, several years ago, 12:07 the basketball player, Lenny Bias 12:09 He was from the University of Maryland, I think. 12:11 He had drugs in his system that caused the artery to spasm down 12:17 Drugs can cause this to happen... 12:18 Methamphetamines... 12:20 Some people that have cigarettes can have spasm. 12:22 It's been reported that people that have low oxygen levels 12:26 ...you get up really high, you know, high altitudes 12:29 The have a chance to have those arteries... 12:30 Maybe exercising at high altitudes? 12:32 That can cause spasm. 12:33 Now another type of heart attack that we RARELY see is 12:36 when a blood clot from somewhere else in the body 12:39 floats into an artery... so that's a rare one. 12:41 So, Dave, you can have a heart attack without cholesterol 12:46 blockages even though it's not the most common way to have it. 12:49 Now what was his next question? 12:51 His other one was... "Is there a test to tell 12:54 who will suffer a heart attack? 12:55 That's kind of an interesting question because 12:57 we ALL would like to take that test... 12:59 No one can tell who is going to have a heart attack, 13:02 and who doesn't. 13:03 You can be sitting here fine one second, 13:05 and if you had a plaque that ruptured, 13:06 you could have a heart attack. 13:08 However, there are things that put a person at a higher risk 13:11 of having a heart attack. 13:13 We're going to talk about those a little bit more later. 13:16 Now, getting back to the basketball players... 13:18 Most of them that die suddenly don't necessarily 13:21 die of a heart ATTACK. 13:23 They frequently have these rhythm problems... 13:25 They're called "arrhythmias" 13:27 and it's usually because they have an abnormal heart. 13:29 Either the heart has had an infection, 13:31 like a virus that hurts it... 13:32 they have a congenital abnormality... 13:34 they have some electrical problems... 13:36 Most of the young people have these electrical problems 13:38 that predispose them to dying suddenly. 13:41 What is an electrical problem? 13:42 Well, an electrical problem is the wires 13:46 that make your heart pump. 13:47 For some reason, you know, the signals aren't doing well 13:51 and the heart either pumps too fast, usually... 13:53 doesn't fill up with blood, 13:55 doesn't pump blood to your body 13:56 because the electrical system is like a series of wires 13:59 doesn't work well... Okay 14:00 Then, you're put out of rhythm... That's right 14:03 And that's how most of the young, young people 14:06 pass away suddenly from heart disease... 14:08 And now, they're even talking about making athletes 14:10 have some screening EKGs and maybe even... 14:13 physical, before they... get into the program 14:15 get into the program... And it's a big deal... 14:17 you always hear about a young athlete that dies 14:19 I mean, it always makes the media attention... Right 14:22 But heart attacks are FAR more common than that 14:25 phenomena happening... 14:26 So I hope that answered your question, Dave 14:29 No test to tell for heart attack 14:30 I think that's the key point for Dave... Okay 14:32 All righty... question #4 is from John in Newport, Arkansas 14:39 His question is... and if you'd like, we can break this up 14:43 into 2 or 3 different questions... Okay 14:44 I'll just ask you the first to start out with... Okay 14:47 "How do cardiologists determine if you have had a heart attack?" 14:51 And I'm assuming, John, that you mean an old heart attack" 14:55 If you're having a new heart attack, 14:59 the way we tell, is your symptoms... 15:00 are you having symptoms? 15:02 We check your EKG. 15:03 If we're still not sure, there's some blood work we can do 15:07 to see if there's been heart damage. 15:09 There's also a sound-wave test that we can use to see 15:12 if the heart is moving or not. 15:13 Can you visually see that in one of these tests? Yes... 15:16 We can visually see whether the heart is moving, 15:18 and if it's having a heart attack, it's not moving... 15:20 It's that one part of the muscle that has died doesn't move then 15:22 That's exactly right. 15:23 We can even put dye up in the arteries of the heart to see 15:26 if it's completely blocked off. 15:28 That's what we do usually acutely. 15:32 Let's say, Dan, you come to me and you say... 15:34 "I think I had a heart attack a week ago... I had a lot of 15:36 chest pain, I stayed at home" 15:38 "You know, I don't know if I did. " 15:40 Well the first thing I would do, after taking your history... 15:42 is I would do an EKG... Right 15:44 There are some characteristic findings on an EKG 15:47 that can tell me if you had a heart attack. 15:49 Can you have a normal EKG and have a heart attack? 15:52 Yes, you can! 15:53 So there are some other tests we can do... 15:55 One that we can do is a sound-wave test to see if 15:58 that heart was dead and not moving. 15:59 There's a test where we can inject a nuclear substance 16:03 that goes throughout the heart to see if it's been damaged 16:05 Now how does a nuclear substance I don't understand it... 16:08 What a nuclear substance is... 16:09 We'd start an IV, and we can put the substance that would go 16:12 inside the heart... 16:13 Why do they call it... "nuclear" 16:15 Because it's radioactive. Okay 16:16 It's a radioactive substance. 16:17 We have a series of cameras that takes pictures of the heart 16:21 and, depending on how that tracer goes through the heart, 16:24 it doesn't go to the parts that have been damaged... Okay 16:27 And it would show up on our pictures... 16:28 Then I could say, "Listen, 3 or 4 weeks ago, 16:31 you had a heart attack. " 16:32 So we can tell if you've had a heart attack... 16:34 and that might even make us decide to change treatment, 16:37 or even do some more testing on you. 16:39 But it gives you a benchmark to start at... That's right 16:43 Okay, the other part of John's question was... 16:46 He was told by his doctor that he had had a heart attack. 16:50 He has never felt poorly, and works construction every day. 16:57 He said, "I put the 20 to 30 year olds to shame" 17:02 Wow, he's a pretty strong man... Yeah, I guess! 17:05 The main reason he's writing this question is... 17:07 He says, "I'm 55, and I was wondering if this would 17:10 be a problem with my insurance. " 17:12 Well, it could be... it could be 17:14 All the time, I get people in my office, and they say... 17:17 "Someone has told me that I've had a heart attack" 17:20 And if you put that on the insurance... 17:22 you now have a preexisting medical problem. A record 17:25 So it's really important to get this cleared up. 17:28 So, John, what I usually do in this case, 17:31 is say, "I'm not sure whether you had a heart attack or not, 17:34 but there are some tests we can do... 17:35 the tests we talked about... Let's find out if you did. 17:38 Now, unfortunately, if you did have a heart attack, 17:41 it might affect your insurance... 17:43 but a lot of times, people have not had a heart attack 17:46 and we say, "No, it was just indigestion or something else. " 17:49 Does John have any input, or is it possible for John to 17:53 ask questions regarding this before it's put 17:55 onto his past record? 17:57 Yes, that is, but that's a tricky matter, 18:01 and it really just depends on your insurance. 18:04 Some insurance will not pay for this... 18:06 they're paying for the test, and they usually want to have 18:09 access to it, and every year when your insurance comes up 18:13 there's some type of physical and review... 18:15 So it really varies, but it's hard nowadays to hide something 18:20 from insurance companies... 18:21 And most of them, will work with you. Correct 18:24 So I hope that answered John's questions... 18:27 and John is from Newport, Arkansas, 18:29 weren't you from Arkansas, Dan? 18:30 Yeah, we're from northwest Arkansas. That's what I thought! 18:33 Appreciate your bringing that up! Yeah, okay... 18:37 Let's move to the next question then... 18:38 #5 is from Daniel in Australia 18:42 He says, "My family moved to Australia years ago" 18:46 He tries to live healthfully. 18:48 He said, "I know my heart attacks are common" 18:51 Obviously, he has them... 18:53 Or, he said, "I know heart attacks are common", I'm sorry 18:57 "What should be done if I think I'm having a heart attack" 19:02 Well, it depends where you're at... I guess 19:05 I mean, for instance, in your car... that's one of the worse 19:08 places to have a heart attack. 19:10 Usually, the people that have heart attacks in the car, 19:14 usually, we don't even know that they've had a heart attack 19:18 ...because they WRECK! 19:20 They wreck and die, and we don't know exactly what caused it 19:24 ...but a lot of wrecks, unexplained wrecks, could be 19:27 heart attacks... from them Right 19:29 Now, if you think you're having a heart attack in the car, 19:32 Daniel, the first thing I would do... 19:35 Okay, the first thing we'd recommend is... 19:37 The first thing I would do is PRAY.. I would pray 19:39 I would pray for divine healing. 19:42 Some people, some naturalists out there say... 19:45 you know... cayenne pepper. 19:46 If you have some cayenne pepper you might choke that down, 19:48 and that might prevent it... I don't think that's going to hurt 19:51 But what I think what's going to help immediately 19:52 is pulling over so you don't put someone else in danger 19:56 ...getting help If you have a cell phone, 19:58 or can flag someone down... 911 20:01 And in the process, if you can COUGH... 20:03 Do a lot of FORCEFUL COUGHING 20:05 and DEEP BREATHING, sometimes that can keep a heart going 20:09 ESPECIALLY if you're going to get into 20:11 a dangerous rhythm problem. 20:12 What does the coughing do to affect your heart 20:15 if you're in that situation? 20:16 A couple of things... the coughing, if you go into a 20:18 dangerous rhythm, the COUGH could set the heart back 20:22 into a normal rhythm. 20:25 It's sort of like being defibrillated... Right, it could 20:27 Another thing that the coughing does is it helps push blood 20:30 up to the brain so you don't pass out 20:33 because if you're having a heart attack, 20:34 you want blood to get to your brain as long as you can 20:37 so you can get help. 20:39 Now there's a narrow window when you're having a heart 20:41 attack... You could pass out, you might NOT pass out. 20:44 What does that involve, the narrow window? 20:47 Well, if you do happen to pass out... 20:49 that means the blood is not getting to your head. 20:51 It's a pretty bad situation. Right 20:53 And it's usually caused, not so much by the heart being weak, 20:56 but the rhythm that this damage causes... 20:58 The heart is going so FAST, blood can't get to your head 21:01 You pass out. Okay 21:03 So, the cough will help blood get to your head... 21:05 But once you pass out, you've got about 6 good minutes 21:08 if someone can restore blood flow, 21:10 you're not going to have significant damage. 21:12 But after that 6 minute window goes by, 21:15 you're going to have some serious problems. 21:17 But it's good... I think, for people... 21:19 You know, we talked earlier how common cardiovascular disease is 21:24 If you sort of have a plan in your head... 21:26 You know, a lot of people now, Have an emergency plan... Right 21:28 They have cell phones that go with them on the trip 21:31 Even some people that are high risk, they carry defibrillators 21:34 around, so people would have that if they do it. 21:36 Now that's if you're alone. Right 21:38 Now let's say that Dan is with someone else... Okay 21:41 Well if Dan is with someone else, that person 21:44 can stay with Dan and help get that... 21:46 Now, I had a person not too long ago that was hiking 21:49 far away, and had a heart attack Out in the middle of nowhere! 21:52 Yeah, but they did have their cell phone, and they were able 21:55 to activate that and someone came and got to help them. 21:57 Luckily it wasn't a bad heart attack, 21:59 and they were live through that. 22:01 So I hope, Dan, that that gives you a little insight of what 22:05 you can do to sort of help the situation out. 22:10 All righty... Let's go on to our next question 22:13 It's from Mary, in Hilo, Hawaii 22:16 Is that how it's pronounced? Hilo? I have no idea. 22:18 I've never been to Hawaii. 22:20 She says that... "My brother, Patrick, had a heart attack, 22:23 and he was walking around the same day in his hospital room. " 22:26 "Why do they keep you in the hospital for so many days 22:30 after the heart attack? 22:31 I've got a theory on this... Okay 22:33 I'm convinced that the nurses totally enjoy you walking around 22:38 with no back on your gown! 22:40 OH, that's not TRUE, Dan! 22:42 You know, to change the subject, I don't know why they haven't 22:45 invented something a little bit more modest... 22:48 And if there are any viewers out there... 22:49 that would be an EXCELLENT thing to invent... is a gown 22:52 It's very uncomfortable... 22:53 Not only for the person wearing it, but the person there. 22:55 Let's get back to Patrick's problem here. 22:58 Mary, they kept them in the hospital for 23:00 so many days for a couple of reasons... 23:01 Used to... they kept people in the hospital for a long time. 23:05 They used to have bed rest, 23:07 and if you remember, several years ago, 23:08 President Eisenhower, he had a lot of heart attacks, 23:11 and he was bed rested for a long time. 23:14 But nowadays, we have all these 23:15 ways to deal with acute heart attacks... 23:17 For instance, if you're having a heart attack now 23:19 and get in there within 5 or 6 hours, 23:21 frequently, we can restore the blood flow to the heart 23:24 and there's no damage at all. Right 23:26 ...if you get in quick enough. 23:28 We have balloons with stents in them to open up the arteries 23:31 Sometimes in some situations around the world, 23:33 they give medicines to break up the blood clots 23:36 so blood gets through. 23:37 Those instances, people usually go home fairly soon 23:40 because we've aborted the damage. 23:43 ...And that's what we call the BATTLE! Right 23:45 The initial battle of having heart disease. 23:47 In other instances, Mary, what happens is 23:51 there has been some damage, 23:52 and when there's damage done, 23:54 the heart needs to heal. 23:55 Dan, if you broke your arm, you wouldn't just start moving it 23:59 the next day... No, not to work the next day, no. 24:02 Right, you would rest it. Right 24:03 Well the same principle goes with the heart. 24:05 When the heart is damaged, we like to rest it. 24:08 We like to keep a person in bed rest. 24:10 Also, we can see how things heal. 24:12 Sometimes, in the healing process, if there's been damage, 24:15 a scar forms, and the scar itself can generate 24:18 a dangerous rhythm. Okay... 24:21 Because it affects the muscle? 24:23 Well, the scar is in the muscle, but the electrical system 24:27 used to go through that... Okay 24:28 Sometimes a scar... A scar blocks the electrical 24:31 rhythm... No, it can generate an 24:33 abnormal rhythm. Okay, okay 24:35 It can generate an abnormal rhythm 24:36 that can be dangerous to you. 24:37 That usually happens day 3 to 5 from a heart attack. 24:40 Sometimes as the heart heals, it gets bigger 24:43 and the valves start to leak. 24:44 Sometimes if a muscle is dead, you could actually... 24:48 a hole could come in it... 24:50 and blood could leak from chamber to chamber, 24:52 or something that's very fatal, is if a scar forms 24:55 on the lateral part of the outside of the heart 24:57 ...the heart muscle itself could rupture, 24:59 and blood could start leaking out of the heart. 25:02 So what do you do to protect that once that happens? 25:05 That is usually fatal. Okay 25:07 For instance, if you were... 25:09 and this is something that is totally unrelated, 25:11 but I thought I'd bring it up... 25:12 If you had something impaled in your heart, 25:15 okay... like we heard about the stingray recently 25:18 If you had a stingray in your heart, okay... 25:20 and it's gone through the chambers, 25:22 and if you pull that out, what's going to happen? 25:24 It allows all the blood to gush out... That's right 25:26 But if you leave that in... 25:28 If you're impaled and leave that in, 25:29 that at least... plugs the hole in the dyke 25:32 But if the heart muscle springs a leak in it, 25:35 what we have to do IMMEDIATELY is repair that leak 25:38 and that's in open heart surgery... That's major 25:41 But usually, we can't get to the patient in time when 25:43 that has happened. Okay 25:45 So, getting back to Mary's question, 25:47 the reason we do this is because we want to monitor 25:49 for those side effects, and also see how 25:51 the patient does with medications and treatments 25:54 and start educating them on how to take care of their heart 25:56 Education is probably the #1 thing... Yes it is 25:59 along with medication... And that's what Heartwise Ministries 26:01 is about... is about educating people. 26:03 But not so much that have the acute thing, 26:05 but chronically. 26:06 We want to prevent this problem from happening. 26:07 And give them tools, basically in their toolbox 26:13 to help themselves, because that's what it's all about. 26:16 ...#7 is from Tressa in Lake Charles, Louisiana 26:22 Lake Charles, I know where that is. 26:23 She says, "The day after my 50th wedding anniversary, 26:26 I had a heart attack" 26:27 "Is it possible to have another heart attack?" 26:30 Yeah, Tressa... in fact, if you've had a first heart attack, 26:33 the chances of you having a second heart attack 26:36 is even higher. 26:37 I think that goes back to our percentages that we were 26:40 talking about when we started this show, was 2nd, 3rd and 4th 26:43 And what I view, Dan, is I view the initial heart attack is 26:47 the battle... You know, that's the battle that has to be fought 26:50 initially... And usually that battle 26:52 needs modern medicine. Right 26:54 You know, a balloon or stent. 26:56 But then the second part, is after they cover from 26:58 the heart attack... At least, Tressa, we never 27:00 want her to have a heart attack again. 27:02 That's when we start looking at the war. 27:04 We look at all the things that could cause or precipitate 27:08 a heart attack... Different things we can control 27:11 And when you look in the big picture of things that are 27:13 bothering the world today, as your statistics have shown, 27:17 heart disease is a WAR! 27:19 It's greater than any war anywhere! 27:22 And, this needs to be talked about, thought about, 27:25 and prevented. 27:26 So, what we try to do is get people to think about the war 27:28 All those causes that might cause her to have a heart attack 27:32 Interesting... 27:33 Well Tressa, I hope that answers your question 27:36 And, you know, Dan, unfortunately, 27:38 we're running out of time in talking about a heart attack. 27:40 Well, it's been a good time. 27:41 It's been a pleasure, but I want to leave the 27:43 audience with one thing... 27:45 The more you learn about this disease, 27:47 the better prepared you are not only to prevent it, 27:50 but to deal with it. 27:51 And I want to thank the listeners at this time 27:54 for talking to us. 27:55 Dan, I thank you for being here on "Wonderfully Made" 27:57 And we want to keep God in our thoughts 27:59 because we are, INDEED, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made! |
Revised 2014-12-17