Don't Have a Heart Attack at Night or on the Weekend

Did you know you have a better chance of dying from a heart attack if you have it at night or on the weekend?

 A new study has found that "6,000 extra deaths a year" are a result of factors that occur after patients arrive at the hospital after regular business hours, according to Medical News Today. 

 It may be because emergency treatment is slower after business hours or that there are less medical professionals on hand, or a host of many other reasons, but the odds are relatively good that, if you have a heart attack in the evening or outside business hours, you might well die.

 In fact, if you arrive "after hours," your mortality risk is 5% higher than those who are treated during regular hours.  

 The study also found that patients arriving with ST elevation myocardial infarction had a 15-minute wait before treatment for a stent to re-open their arteries, increasing their risk of death by 10-15%.  

 Heart attacks are the number-one killer of both men and women in the U.S.

 It used to be (maybe still is), that relatives in the medical field advised that you not schedule surgery or go to the hospital in July. That's when the new crop of students just graduating from medical school comes on board.  Now we have to worry about nights and weekends, too?

 Of course, no one plans a heart attack.   

 But perhaps it's good to know this ahead of time so you or your loved ones can speak up if this does happen to you.  Thanks to falls and spills I've taken while jogging (I know, I know, find another sport!), I' visit the ER often and I've learned to speak up, too.  (Maybe because they all look like they just got home from the prom.)





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