Heart Attack Treatment

Early heart attack treatment can prevent or limit damage to the heart muscle. Acting fast, at the first symptoms of heart attack, can save your life. Medical personnel can begin diagnosis and treatment even before you get to the hospital.

Sometimes heart attack treatment is started right away if a heart attack is suspected, even before the diagnosis is confirmed. These include:

Oxygen
Aspirin to prevent further blood clotting
Nitroglycerin, to reduce the workload on the heart and improve blood flow through the coronary arteries
Treatment for chest pain

Once the diagnosis of heart attack is confirmed or strongly suspected, heart attack treatment is started to try to restore blood flow to the heart are started as soon as possible. heart attack treatment include medicines and medical procedures.

Medicines

A number of different kinds of medicines may be used in heart attack treatment. They include the following.

Thrombolytic Medicines

These medicines (also called clot busters) are used to dissolve blood clots that are blocking the coronary arteries. To be most effective, these medicines must be given within 1 hour after the start of heart attack symptoms.

Beta Blockers

These medicines decrease the workload on your heart. Beta blockers also are used to relieve chest pain or discomfort and to help prevent additional heart attacks. Beta blockers also are used to correct arrhythmias (irregular heartbeats).

Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) Inhibitors

These medicines lower blood pressure and reduce the strain on your heart. They also help slow down further weakening of the heart muscle.

Anticoagulants

These medicines thin the blood and prevent clots from forming in your arteries.

Antiplatelet Medicines

These medicines (such as aspirin and clopidogrel) stop platelets (a type of blood cell) from clumping together and forming unwanted clots.

Other Medicines

Medicines may also be given to relieve pain and anxiety, and to treat arrhythmias, which often occur during a heart attack.

Medical Procedures

If medicines can´t stop a heart attack, medical procedures—surgical or nonsurgical—may be used. These procedures include the following.

Angioplasty

This nonsurgical procedure can be used to open coronary arteries that are blocked by a blood clot. During angioplasty, a catheter (a thin, flexible tube) with a balloon on the end is threaded through a blood vessel to the blocked coronary artery. Then, the balloon is inflated to push the plaque against the wall of the artery. This widens the inside of the artery, restoring blood flow. During angioplasty, a small mesh tube called a stent may be put in the artery to help keep it open. Some stents are coated with medicines that help prevent the artery from becoming blocked again.

Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting

Coronary artery bypass grafting is a surgery in which arteries or veins are taken from other areas of your body and sewn in place to bypass (that is, go around) blocked coronary arteries. This provides a new route for blood flow to the heart muscle.

Treatment After You Leave the Hospital

Most people spend several days in the hospital after a heart attack. When you leave the hospital, heart attack treatment doesn´t stop. At home, your heart attack treatment may include daily medicines and cardiac rehabilitation (rehab). Your doctor may recommend lifestyle changes, including quitting smoking, losing weight, changing your diet, and increasing your physical activity, to lower your chances of having another heart attack.

Cardiac Rehabilitation

Your doctor may prescribe cardiac rehab to help you recover from a heart attack and to help prevent another heart attack. Almost everyone who has had a heart attack can benefit from rehab. The heart is a muscle, and the right exercise will strengthen it.

But cardiac rehab isn´t only about exercise. It also includes education, counseling, and learning about reducing your risk factors. Rehab will help you learn the best way to take care of yourself after having a heart attack and how to prevent having another one. The cardiac rehab team may include doctors (your family doctor, a cardiologist, and/or a surgeon), nurses, exercise specialists, physical and occupational therapists, dietitians, and psychologists or other behavioral therapists.

Nutrients for Cardiovascular Health

Step 1. Establish a Nutritional Foundation:

VIBE® - 1-2 ounces daily - split between AM/PM
Liquid multi-nutrient delivery technology that provides critical essential nutrients and cofactors needed for the body to thrive. VIBE provides outstanding daily nutritional support and contains specialized nutrients to manage the aging process.*

Step 2. Focus on Cardiovascular Health Goals:

EFACOR™ - (Omega-3s) - 2 softgels daily - 10 min. before a meal
Concentrated, pharmaceutical grade, natural Omega-3 dietary supplement providing high dose EPA and DHA. EFACOR is guaranteed ultra-pure, free of environmental contaminants and to have exceptional taste.*

Q-Plus - (CoQ10) - 1-2 TBSP daily - split between AM/PM
Body Support™ Q-Plus™ dietary liquid supplement provides heart-healthy L-carnitine and Co-Q10 natural substances found in all cells of the body important in energy production. More Co-Q10 and L-carnitine are found in the heart tissue than in any other muscle. Lecithin is important for cholesterol metabolism. Co-Q10 is a potent antioxidant.*

Heartflow® - (Folate/B12) - 1 TBSP daily - in AM
Heartflow™ formulated nutraceutical designed to promote healthy blood vessels. Provides high-potency B-vitamins that promote healthy and normal homocysteine levels, a key factor in blood vessel health and function. Addresses nutritional deficiencies in synthesizing B-vitamins that may occur as an individual ages.*

ATP-Pro® - (D-Ribose) - 1-2 scoops daily - split between AM/PM
ATP-Pro™ a powerful dietary supplement provides body with patented form of D-Ribose (most fundamental source of body energy). Body uses D-Ribose to naturally build energy stores. ATP-Pro helps body quickly replace energy levels depleted by hard work, exercise, or health challenges.*

Vascular Advantage® - (L-Arginine) - 4 scoops daily - split between AM/PM
Vascular Advantage™ nutraceutical product designed to promote the health of the cardiovascular system through the support of vascular integrity, the presence of antioxidants, and the encouragement of nitric oxide production.*

The information provided should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. Please, consult your health care provider before taking over the counter or prescription drugs, nutritional supplements, or following any health treatment or regimen. The above product(s) is not a substiture for a well balanced diet.

* This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.