New study says risk of heart attack is more on Monday
More than 20,000 patients were studied for this purpose.
High STEMI heart attacks were seen on Monday
The researchers found that ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), one of the most serious types of heart attack, was seen in patients. The rate of STEMI heart attack was high on Monday, the researchers found.
In STEMI, a major coronary artery is completely blocked, cutting off oxygen and blood supply.
"We presume it has something to do with circadian rhythms"
"The exact mechanism for these variations is unknown but we presume it has something to do with how the circadian rhythm affects circulating hormones that can influence heart attacks and strokes," Cardiologist Dr Jack Laffan, who led the research at the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust told the Daily Mail citing the findings of previous studies where such variations in heart attacks were seen in winter and in early morning.
"It is likely to be due to the stress of returning to work. Increased stress leads to rising levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which is linked to a higher risk of heart attack," he added.
"It is vital to know how and why heart attacks happen"
"Someone is admitted to hospital due to a life-threatening heart attack every five minutes in the UK, so it's vital that research continues to shed light on how and why heart attacks happen. This study adds to evidence around the timing of particularly serious heart attacks, but we now need to unpick what it is about certain days of the week that makes them more likely," Professor Sir Nilesh Samani, medical director at British Heart Foundation told the media.
More than 30,000 patients get admitted to hospitals in the UK due to STEMI.
What happens during STEMI?
During STEMI there is a total blockage of the heart's main supply arteries and due to this the muscles of the ventricles die.
STEMI is considered to be one of the most critical types of heart attack as these are the chambers of the heart that pump blood to lungs and too much damage in these muscles can impair the heart's ability to pump blood to the body. Since heart muscles don't regenerate, the muscles get damaged permanently.
How is STEMI different from a heart attack?
STEMI occurs when there is a total blockage of the coronary artery and the heart muscle is dying.
Other heart attacks involve a partial blockage of the artery.
Tobacco use, smoking, diabetes, cholesterol, alcohol, drugs like amphetamines, cocaine and less physical activity are considered to be the lifestyle habits that trigger STEMI.
Having a family history of heart diseases can also increase your risk of developing STEMI.
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