Beijing 120 emergency medical experts talk about science | Understanding of "pain" - Early identification of myocardial infarction, saving more lives

In order to increase public awareness of the severity of myocardial infarction and the importance of prevention and treatment, and to popularize the standardized treatment process for acute myocardial infarction, my country established the "Myocardial Infarction Treatment Day" for the first time in 2014, and designated November 20 of each year as my country's "Myocardial Infarction Treatment Day".

The meaning of 1120:

1. Call 120 immediately after an acute myocardial infarction occurs;

2. The golden time for rescue of acute myocardial infarction is 120 minutes.

If myocardial infarction is the sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of patients with cardiovascular emergencies, then pain is the flash of cold light on the sword. If myocardial infarction can be identified as early as possible and treated scientifically, it is possible to save lives.

What can we do before a dangerous emergency strikes?

Today, Wang Xiaogang, Beijing's health science expert and chief physician of Beijing Emergency Center, will tell you about his understanding of "pain", as well as the "three tips" for treating myocardial infarction and easy-to-remember first aid tips to help you respond calmly and deal with it properly at critical moments.

In our daily lives, pain seems to be commonplace. What kind of pain should we be alert to and seek medical attention in time? From a doctor's perspective, life-threatening chest pain is often caused by heart, lung and large vessel diseases, such as acute myocardial infarction, aortic dissection, acute pulmonary embolism, spontaneous pneumothorax, etc.

The treatment of these emergencies requires every second to be saved and cannot be delayed . Time is life, and choices determine life. Let us take a look at this emergency case with this in mind.

Tip 1: Identify early and wait

When the body is unwell, it often sends us a signal , such as pain . If we do not pay attention to it and fail to seize the best opportunity to seek medical treatment, our lives will be greatly threatened.

In real life, there are often some patients who have a weak sense of health, are unaware of the seriousness of acute illnesses, or seek medical treatment inappropriately, which ultimately leads to tragedy.

These patients are often very young and believe that their annual physical examinations are normal and that they are in good health. They believe that chest pain is not a big problem and will pass if they just endure it.

Some patients, although aware that chest pain may be a heart attack, use the excuse that they are too busy at work to get away, and insist on going to the doctor after they are done with their work.

Some patients, even if they realize that they need to seek medical treatment immediately, choose the wrong way and die suddenly before reaching the hospital. When a heart attack occurs, the myocardium is in a state of ischemia and hypoxia. At this time, emotional fluctuations or exercise will make the already fragile heart worse and cause the condition to worsen.

Therefore, if you feel unbearable chest pain, it is best to call 120 as soon as possible and wait quietly for the emergency personnel to arrive .

After dialing 120 emergency number, what else can we do at the scene?

Tip 2: Call for help early and follow instructions

120 is China's medical emergency telephone number. When calling the emergency number, the caller must remain calm as much as possible and inform the patient's address, symptoms and the help required as clearly and accurately as possible .

When conditions permit, the person calling for help should actively cooperate with the dispatcher's remote medical guidance , and provide on-site rescue to the patient to the best of their ability before the ambulance arrives, racing against time to save lives and achieving "calling for help is first aid."

After the emergency personnel arrive, they will take various rescue measures to carry out advanced life support to stabilize the patient's condition, and conduct close monitoring and timely rescue in the ambulance. At the same time, they will contact the hospital to establish a green channel for the patient and prepare for subsequent treatment.

Tip 3: Mutual trust drives away disease

Acute myocardial infarction is an acute disease caused by narrowing or blockage of the coronary arteries, which leads to myocardial ischemia, hypoxia, and death of myocardial cells, resulting in serious damage to heart function and affecting life. Its mortality and disability rates are very high . According to data released by the National Health Commission, cardiovascular diseases rank first in the mortality rate of diseases in China. There are about 1 million patients with acute myocardial infarction in China every year, and 1 in every 3 patients with myocardial infarction dies, with a mortality rate of more than 30%. The incidence is currently tending to be younger.

With the advancement of medicine, the treatment of myocardial infarction has become very mature. When the emergency doctor makes a preliminary diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction and sends the patient to the hospital quickly, in order to open the blocked blood vessels as soon as possible within 120 minutes of onset, family members must not hesitate when signing the operation, so as not to delay the treatment . Please actively cooperate with medical staff and work together to save lives.

Tips for treating myocardial infarction with the Beijing 120 emergency department

Please be sure to remember this!

Don’t take chest pain and sweating lightly;

Toothache and abdominal pain require vigilance;

Call for help as soon as possible;

Wait for the doctor calmly, don't be stubborn;

Strengthen communication and mutual trust;

CPR saves lives.

With the above three tips, we can launch a powerful "combination punch" against the disease of acute myocardial infarction.

First Punch Prevention

Build a "heart defense line"

01. Improve your lifestyle: low-salt, low-fat diet, proper exercise, weight control, regular work and rest, quit smoking and drinking, avoid staying up late and sitting for long periods of time.

02. Understand your health status: have regular physical examinations and pay attention to monitoring blood pressure, blood sugar and blood lipid levels.

03. Follow the doctor’s advice to stay healthy: For those diagnosed with one of the “three highs” (high blood pressure, high blood lipids, and high blood sugar), follow the doctor’s advice to achieve the standards through non-drug intervention or regular medication, and undergo long-term monitoring.

04. Avoid adverse stimuli: Patients with cardiovascular diseases should avoid fatigue, excitement, anger, agitation, cold, etc.

Second punch identification

Capturing the signal of the heart

Typical symptoms:

01. Chest pain accompanied by profuse sweating, the pain often lasts for more than 30 minutes without relief.

Symptoms that may occur:

02. Fatigue, chest discomfort, chest tightness, etc.

Atypical manifestations:

03. Unexplained toothache, abdominal pain, tightness in the throat or pain radiating to the left shoulder, back or inner side of the left upper limb, etc. Especially elderly diabetic patients rarely feel chest pain.

The third punch to save yourself

Winning the chance of "heart"

01. Stop all activities immediately.

02. Remember the "two 120s". First, call the emergency number 120 as soon as possible. Second, try to open blocked blood vessels within 120 minutes to reduce the risk of accidents.

03. For those who are highly suspected of having heart disease or previous coronary heart disease, immediately dissolve one tablet of nitroglycerin sublingually. If the symptoms do not improve after 5 minutes, dissolve another tablet. Note: Use with caution when systolic blood pressure is less than 90 mmHg or heart rate is greater than 110 beats/minute.

04. For those with breathing difficulties, give oxygen if possible.

Fourth Punch Mutual Rescue

Protecting the health of the heart

Implementing high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation and electric shock defibrillation within 4 minutes after the patient's respiratory and cardiac arrest is the key to effectively improving the success rate of patient rescue. Follow the following four steps when rescuing each other:

01. The first step is evaluation:

Assess the environment first to ensure it is safe.

02. The second step of inspection:

Determine consciousness, such as calling or patting the patient. If there is no response, proceed to the next step immediately.

03. The third step is to call for help:

Shout for help loudly and seek help from others, call 120 emergency number, and try to get a nearby automated external defibrillator (AED).

04. The fourth step of rescue:

Check for breathing for 5-10 seconds by observing whether the patient's chest and abdomen are rising and falling. If there is no breathing, the patient should be immediately placed on a solid surface, and high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation and electric defibrillation should be performed immediately until the ambulance arrives at the scene and the 120 emergency doctor takes over.

Let us join hands, pay attention to health, develop a good lifestyle, continuously improve health literacy, and strengthen the reserve of first aid skills. Start from the "heart", cherish life, learn first aid, and stop the "pain".

Hand-painted illustration: Di Shanshan

Source: I work at 120