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Why are doctors missing early heart attack warning signs?

A new study suggests that early warning signs of a heart attack were missed in around 16 percent of people who later died.

Heart warning signs

A new study from Imperial College London suggests that early warning signs of a heart attack were missed in around 16 percent of people who later died.

The study, which was published in Lancet Public Health, examined the records of all 446,744 National Health Service (NHS) hospital stays between 2006 and 2010 that recorded heart attacks, as well as all 135,950 heart attack deaths in the same time period.

The researchers also studied whether patients who died of a heart attack had been admitted to the hospital at all in the four weeks before they died, and if so, whether signs of a heart attack had been noted as the primary diagnosis or the main cause of admission, secondary diagnosis (in other words, additional to the main diagnosis or cause of admission), or not recorded at all.

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They found that 16 percent of the 135,950 heart attack deaths had been hospitalized in the four weeks prior to dying but that heart attack symptoms weren’t mentioned in their records.

Also alarming was the fact that early warning signs such as fainting, chest pain, and shortness of breath were found in some of the patients up to a month before they died but that because there wasn’t necessarily obvious damage to their hearts at the time, doctors didn’t connect the dots.

Moreover, the researchers found that patients whose heart attacks were labeled as a secondary diagnosis were two to three times more likely to die than patients whose primary cause of admission to the hospital was a heart attack.

Majid Ezzati, a professor at Imperial College's School of Public Health and a co-author of the paper, noted in the study that he and his colleagues are not yet sure why doctors are missing early warning signs, “which is why more detailed research must be conducted to make recommendations for change.

This might include updated guidance for healthcare professionals, changes in clinical culture, or allowing doctors more time to examine patients and look at their previous records."

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While this study is obviously sobering, there are steps you can take to lower your risk of a heart attack. Eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly are two of your best weapons.

In fact, research shows that fit people are more likely to survive heart attacks than their out-of-shape peers. Stressing less (easier said than done) will also help, as there’s a strong association between stress and heart attacks.

And if you experience chest pain, nausea, shortness of breath, fatigue (or these lesser-known, more subtle heart attack symptoms) pop an aspirin and call 911 immediately.

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