Healthline: Men and Women Have Different Warning Signs of Cardiac Arrest
Healthline recently interviewed Sumeet Chugh, MD, director of the Center for Cardiac Arrest Prevention in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai and the Pauline and Harold Price Chair in Cardiac Electrophysiology Research, about a recent study he led that found men and women experience different symptoms before a cardiac arrest.
In the study, which was published in the peer-reviewed journal The Lancet Digital Health, Chugh and his co-authors analyzed data from two ongoing studies: the 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.
Investigators then assessed the symptoms of individuals prior to experiencing a cardiac arrest and compared the data with control groups that sought medical attention for similar reasons.
The findings showed that people experience warning symptoms up to 24 hours before a sudden cardiac arrest, but these symptoms vary by sex. Chugh explained that men typically experienced chest pain before a cardiac arrest, whereas women typically reported shortness of breath.
Symptoms for the subgroup of people who didn’t have a cardiac arrest included dizziness, abdominal pain or discomfort, weakness, and nausea or vomiting.
“Now that we have demonstrated which warning symptoms are more important, we are hoping that more individuals at risk of imminent sudden death will pay attention to their symptoms and call 911 early, thereby increasing their likelihood of survival from this mostly lethal condition,” Chugh told Healthline.
He and his co-authors plan to conduct further research to improve the prediction of sudden cardiac arrest and increase the chances of survival for people who are at risk for this condition.
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