Genetic disorders are primary case of cardiac arrest: Doctors

HYDERABAD: The recent death of Gopi Raj, an 18-year-old intermediate second-year student who suffered a cardiac arrest minutes before entering his examination centre, is the the third such case reported from the city in the last few months. Barely a month ago, another 22-year-old youth, Ekambaram, similarly collapsed while undergoing physical fitness test for police recruitment in Ibrahimpatnam. Prior to that, in May 2018, senior BJP leader Bandaru Dattatreya's 21-year-old son succumbed to a sudden cardiac arrest.


Doctors attribute majority of these cases to

genetic disorder

. Considering these youngsters often do not exhibit any symptoms prior to the massive cardiac arrest, families are usually unprepared to deal with such a sudden blow, they say.

But, as a precautionary measure, experts suggest that young people with genetic issues and a family history of cardiac arrest refrain from too much exertion. "Genetic disorders like

hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

, Long QT

Syndrome

and brugada syndrome- all disorders of the heart - are primary causes of such deaths. Youngsters who have any of these genetic disorders need to be avoid strenuous activity and sever anxiety," said Dr A Sai Ravi Shankar, interventional cardiologist at Continental Hospitals. In case a family member has one of these disorders, they suggest, the siblings and children essentially undergo screening.

Also, absence of basic training in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and other life saving techniques reduces the chances of survival, doctors say, pointing out how survival is directly linked to amount of time between onset of a sudden cardiac arrest and

defibrillation

(administrating of a controlled electric shock to restore normal heartbeat). "If no bystander CPR is provided, a victim's chances of survival is reduced by 7 to 10% with every minute of delay until defibrillation," said Dr Vijay Rao Boinapally, cardiologist and CPR trainer.