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Show Suspected heart attacks need immediate care j If you think you're having a heart attack, seek medical help immediately. A wait may cost you your life. Many heart-attack victims wait before calling their doctors or the paramedics. Often they ask a friend or relative to drive them to the hospital. But it's during that wait or ride that individuals are at greatest risk for having deadly arrhythmias (irregular heart beats that cause the heart to inadequately pump blood and can lead to death), points out Dr. Nathan Dean, LDS Hospital . emergency room physician.' "In the first few hours after symptoms appear, a person is at his greatest risk. That's the period when he is trying to decide if he should call the doctor or if his trouble is only indigestion or a pulled muscle from a golf game." Dr. Dean says. "People try to diagnose their problems on their own, but they're in no position to judge. Chest pain is difficult to assess, and it takes medical personnel and tests to determine the source of the problem," he adds. In fact, a minority of the patients who come to the emergency room complaining of chest pain are actually have a heart attack. "When I tell someone that he's not having a heart attack, he is relieved, at first, and then often apologizes for taking my time. It's not appropriate for a nonmedical person to evaluate his chest pain. I prefer to send home nine chest-pain cases for every one that I admit to the hospital," he comments. Among heart attack symptoms are a persistent chest pain that lasts more than 15 minutes, pain that radiates up the one or both arms or into the jaw, tightness in the chest, shortness of breath, nausea, pallor and heart palpitations. A heart attack can strike anyone at any age, but those at greatest risk are men older than 35 years and women older than 45 years. Dr. Dean recommends a persa suffering from heart attack symptoms to call his physician immediate') explaining the problem ''to the receptionist. If the physician cannot t reached quickly or if it is after office hours, call the paramedics. It is safer for a patient to come to Ike hospital with the paramedics than with a friend or relative. The paramedics can administer oxygen and drugs to relieve the pain and to prevent arrhythmias. They can also closely monitor the patient and deal with an arrhythmia, if one occurs, he explains There is no charge for Ike paramedics, and most insurance policies, including Medicare and Medicaid, will pay for the. ambulance "I don't like it when the emergency medical system is abused by people calling with minor problems, but i suspected heart attack is appropriate ,, use of ; the paramedics," he says.. ,, mwummm.wnm ,,,.1.,h..i..ii I |