Heart failure biggest killer in India, doctors advise lifestyle changes

The study, which also found that heart failure patients in India and Southeast Asia are approximately 10 years younger than their counterparts in South America and China, is an eye-opener for the general public, especially youngsters, to change their lifestyle habits. 

Stating that the most common cause of heart failure is the weakening of heart muscles after an attack, Dr C Moorthy, Professor of Cardiology, Stanley Medical College and Hospital, said, “The heart muscles can weaken without any reason. Infections of the heart muscles are also responsible for the same.” Women, during the latter half of their pregnancy, experience hormonal effects of the placenta, which may be toxic to the heart muscles. In the case of diabetics, they may develop a blockage of heart muscles without a heart attack, he added. Heart failure is a global health problem. It affects about 26 mil lion people worldwide, with an estimated 5.4 million heart failure patients in India. 

“Factors such as low awareness, inaccurate or delayed diagnosis, unhealthy dietary patterns and the lack of an effective treatment protocol have seen an increased incidence of heart failure in India,” said Dr Immaneni Sathyamurthy, Apollo Hospital. 

“Being aware of the symptoms of heart failure is the need of the hour. Whenever a patient develops breathlessness, he/she must visit a cardiologist as that is one of the most common symptoms of heart failure. 

However, in our country – even in places like Tamil Nadu – many (educated or not) come to the conclusion that they are suffering from bronchial asthma when breathless. This inability to recognise the problem, is another main reason why the burden continues to  be so high,” said Dr B Jacob, a Cardiologist. Stressing on the need to get treatment within the first 90 minutes, Dr Rajaram Anantharaman, a senior Cardiologist, said, “In the Western countries, when you have a heart attack and call for help, an ambulance and a paramedic will be made available within eight minutes. Once the diagnosis of heart attack is made, the patient will be taken to a hospital where balloon stenting can be done within 90 minutes. However, this is not possible anywhere in India as there is no dedicated ambulance service, there is the problem of traffic, and the lack of hospitals which can do angioplasty 24x7. 

As a result, patients tend to present themselves late to hospitals.” With the average age in which the disease in India falling between 30 and 40 years, doctors stress on the need for people to make amendments to their lifestyle habits. “Heart attack affects people in their sixties in Europe and US. However, because of our predisposition to diabetes and the fact that we have developed a taste for the Western diet but fail to exercise, the risk of developing non-communicable diseases is very high. If changes are not made soon, the burden will continue to remain high,” added Dr Rajaram