Narayana Health City successfully treated a Bangalorean youth who suffered a heart attack while at work.

The patient, Mohammed Rafeek, was suffering from a coronary artery disease (CAD) with Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) and Triple Vessel Disease.

A 27-year-old software professional, Rafeek was leading a normal life until recently, when he suddenly developed chest pain and was rushed to a nearby hospital. It was found that Rafeek had suffered a heart attack for which he was given adequate treatment. However, the search for an advanced treatment facility led him to Narayana Health City.An expert team of doctors under the aegis of Dr. Sanjay Mehrotra, Senior Consultant - Cardiology, Narayana Health City did a complete evaluation of the patient’s condition and found that he was suffering from coronary artery disease (CAD) with Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS). He underwent a coronary angiogram which showed a blockage (stenosis) of 80 per cent in one of the main arteries of the heart called Left Anterior Descending (LAD) and was planned for an angioplasty and stenting.

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is new technology which is used Near-Infrared Light (NIR) to visualise the inside of the heart arteries. Optical Coherence Tomography allows ten times better visualisation than Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS) which has been a method used to see the inside of heart arteries for a long time. OCT gives a much better resolution and exact information about the nature of the plaque, the extent of narrowing of the coronary artery and helps to choose the size and length of the stent better.

Speaking about the case, Dr. Mehrotra said, “India today is experiencing a rapid transition in the disease burden and is gradually moving towards a scenario where the majority of the deaths are caused by lifestyle diseases. In order to combat the rising incidence, we need to strengthen preventive measures by adopting healthy habits. However, there are times when the disease is already there and one needs to effectively treat the disease which needs a proficient diagnosis and precise treatment. Technologies like optical coherence tomography help in treating such conditions with more precision.”

“In case of Rafeek, with the help of OCT we were able to evaluate the diseased portion of the artery clearly as in his case there was Ruptured plaque which precipitates a heart attack was present in an area which cannot be seen on conventional angiography and failure to do so would have resulted in incomplete coverage which in turn would have lead to complication of stent occlusion and repeat myocardial Infarction (heart attack),” he added.

The patient, Rafeek, said, “While I suffered a heart attack, my wife was nearing her delivery date and it felt like everything around me is coming to an end. I never imagined that I would be back with my wife celebrating the birth of our child. Today, I am not only getting better but leading a normal life again, thanks to the Narayana Health City. I am so grateful to Dr. Sanjay and his team for giving me a new life especially using this new technology in my case. One thing that I have learned from my own personal experience is that there is a reason why our ancestors lived a healthy life, it simply because of the discipline they followed.”

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are posing huge social and economic concerns in India, and the steady upswing in the mortality attributed to CVDs is challenging. To prevent India from becoming the heart disease capital of the world, there is a need to bring a necessary shift in social behaviour and instill ‘healthy living’ as a norm.

The responsibility also lies with the medical fraternity to leverage newer techniques which can effectively manage the disease and improve clinical and patient outcomes, eventually reducing the burden.