Unless you lived in a monastery in the mountains of Utah during the 80’s then you had to remember singing: “Give it to me baby. Give me that stuff that sweet, that funk, that gushy stuff.” Infamous words sung by the master instrumentalist and funk master himself, Rick James. Not sure what you recall, but I remember his wild hair, extravagant clothes, unpredictable responses during interviews but I especially remember wanting to sing and dance along to his soulful and rhythmic beats. Just to give you a mental picture, I wore parachute pants in those days so that tells you a lot about my personality and how artists like Rick James roused my curiosity.
However, how many of you remember that his cause of death was eventually determined to be a heart attack? Though Mr. James had several substances in his bloodstream at his time of death, none of them were at levels toxic enough to have created his demise. This talented vocalist had previously suffered a stroke and was known to have heart disease. Therefore, the warning signs were present and whether or not he paid attention to those alerts is yet to be known.
Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death for both men and women, yet people still mistakenly place it lower than cancer when listing diseases that are most likely to kill them. One in four people will die of heart disease every year, approximately 600,000 people.
Heart disease affects every primary care office across the country. Each provider has his or her unforgettable story of tragedy and its aftermath. I recall such a case as if it were yesterday.
Trouble sleeping was the chief complaint written on the front of the chart for room one. As I entered the room, the normally well-dressed middle-aged woman with the fresh-out-of-the-salon hairstyle, looked surprisingly unkempt. She looked tired, wore sweat pants and appeared to be looking out into space. After hearing her heart-felt story, I understood why she looked so different.
Two weeks prior, she and her husband were leaving from their lunch date when he started complaining of heartburn. He was driving the car but had to pull over because the pain in his chest was becoming more severe. He began to sweat profusely and the pain continued to intensify. The patient’s husband eventually lost consciousness and she and a local pedestrian had to begin CPR, cardiopulmonary resuscitation. This father, husband, and local leader who was only in his 60s died on the scene from a myocardial infarction. His past medical history included several heart disease risk factors such as obesity, hypertension and family history. His lifestyle was one of moderate stress, poor exercise habits and a diet of all the wrong foods.
His wife shared with me that for years she had tried to persuade him to lose weight and consider some better food choices. However, her husband was entangled in the fast-paced race of life, causing him to make unwise decisions regarding his well-being. He was always too busy to stop and try out the new exercise routine or too busy to learn improved ways to cook nutritious meals. He didn’t learn how to slow down before it was too late.
Hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and hyperlipidemia are all risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Many of these diseases can be present without having any symptoms. Diagnosing someone with high blood pressure after their first heart stent is not the ideal way to practice medicine. However, such occurrences are not all that uncommon. Lastly, one of the most important risk factors contributing to the large cardiovascular disease population is tobacco use.
The importance of knowing your health history cannot be stressed enough. Being fully aware of family cardiac history is vital in assessing your risk of future heart problems. Having a first degree relative with a past history of myocardial infarction at a young age increases your personal risk of heart attacks as well. This requires families to actually speak with another so that lifestyle modifications can be implemented to help lower risks.
February has traditionally been known as the month of love, but has now additionally been the month of heart health awareness. Achieving good health should be the number priority of each of us but it will require hard work. Make an appointment today to discuss your risks and to also discuss opportunities to improve it.
Yours in Service,
Denise Hooks-Anderson, M.D.
Assistant Professor
SLUCare Family Medicine
