According to official figures, the number of individuals admitted to the hospital with heart attacks has surged since the pandemic. In England more than 84,000 patients were admitted to hospital because of a heart attack between 2021-22, this was an increase of more than 7,000 in a year.
Chief of health will launch a campaign directing those with symptoms to seek help, with concerns that many cases are being diagnosed too late.
NHS will encourage people to call 999 as soon as they experience any symptoms of a heart attack, such as a feeling of uneasiness, sweating or squeezing across the chest. So that people will have the best chance to survive.
A cardiologist and NHS national clinical director for heart disease professor Nick Linker informs, cardiovascular disease origins one in four deaths across the country, so it is vital that individuals are aware of the early signs of a heart attack.
Every second which passes during a heart attack increases heart muscle damage, and almost all the damage takes place within the first few hours. Reach for help, if you experience symptoms so that you will have a better chance for a full recovery.
Government data recorded almost 100,000 extra deaths among those with heart diseases between spring 2020 and spring of this year. Before the pandemic, 82,000 individuals were hospitalized with heart attacks.
Research concluded that during the pandemic almost half a million of individuals missed out on drugs to prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Heart charities have advised that, extreme disruption to the NHS in the aftermath, including record ambulance delays, may have worsened death rates and increased the number of people who are suffering from heart attacks which would have been avoided with the right help at the right time.
The chances of surviving a heart attack are far higher for those who seek care earlier, with around seven in ten people surviving a heart attack, and increasing to more than nine in ten for those who reach hospital early to receive treatment.
Dr Charmaine Griffiths, the chief executive at the British Heart Foundation said, even if the symptoms are not severe, call 999 immediately. A heart attack is a medical emergency and actions should be taken immediately to save lives.
Health minister Lord Markham said, in England Cardiovascular disease is the second biggest killer. And this campaign builds on the work we’re doing to cut NHS waiting lists by tackling this condition early- including by rolling out a new digital NHS health check which could prevent many heart attacks and strokes.
