Latest news with #HeartMonth
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Knowing signs of heart failure can save your life
HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — As Heart Month comes to a close, 10 On Your Side is taking a look at the signs and symptoms of heart failure. It's the number one cause of death in the U.S. and experts want to make sure you know what to look for. One-in-four people will develop heart failure in their lifetime. In many cases, it's easily prevented by a healthy diet and exercise, but knowing the symptoms can also save your life. Heart failure, and those who have it, has changed over the years.'It's not anymore a disease of the elderly, but we're seeing in younger patient population too,' said Cardiologist Dr. Amin Yehya with Sentara those 65 and older, it's usually caused by blockages in the arteries and is seen with other risk factors like diabetes, obesity or high blood pressure. But in the younger generation, it can be a genetic mutation that is hereditary, or heart failure that comes after a severe illness.'We're seeing a lot of patients in their 20s and 30s and even the teens as well,' Yehya signs for heart failure, individually, may not be serious, but put together, they spell an immediate consultation with your doctor. The first sign is shortness of breath.'They have to stop to catch their breath, they can't go up one flight of stairs [and] at night, they have to sleep propped up in bed — they can't lay flat,' Yehya of breath is the big red flag that can mean more serious underlying symptoms.'With shortness of breath, it means the person is building up fluid, usually in their lungs and they can't breathe,' Yehya said. 'And also, looking at the swelling, the patient needs to look at their legs — are they having swelling in their legs? Is their belly tight? When they eat, do they get full real quick? These are all signs the patient is building up with fluid.'The sooner you see your doctor, the more power you have.'There is nothing more important than empowering and educating your patient,' Yehya said. 'And there is nothing stronger than a patient who is educated about their own disease.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
24-02-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Smartwatch alerts Florida man to dangerous heart condition
A routine glance at his smartwatch transformed into a life-altering moment for Florida Keys man, as the device flashed a stark warning. His heart was dangerously out of rhythm, a silent threat now exposed by wearable technology. "This was worse than I thought," Juan Ravelo recalled after reviewing his old health stats on his smartwatch app. The device didn't just track his steps; it alerted him that his heart wasn't beating properly. Silent threat detected on his wrist Ravelo's smartwatch repeatedly flashed a red warning: "Afib." Then, it sent an urgent notification to his phone. "One day, I saw it on the phone—it was red and I said, 'Whoa, my sister was right,'" Ravelo said. His sister had already been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (Afib) thanks to her smartwatch. She urged Ravelo to wear one, too. Before long, he saw the same warning signs. "I started wearing the watch every day and it started happening more and more frequently," he said. Concerned, Ravelo visited Mariner's Hospital in the Florida Keys. Doctors recommended he go to Baptist Health in Kendall for further evaluation. A common but serious condition Afib is the most frequent cardiac arrhythmia, affecting an estimated 6 to 12 million Americans by 2050, according to health experts. The condition causes an irregular and often rapid heart rhythm, which can lead to blood clots, stroke and other complications. "Instead of beating normally, the heart is fibrillating—'boom, boom, boom, boom, boom,'" said Dr. Brian Wilner, a cardiac electrophysiologist at Baptist Health. "That causes blood to become static in the heart, increasing the risk of clots forming. If a clot gets pumped out, it could go to the brain and cause a stroke." Symptoms of Afib include: • Irregular heartbeat • Heart palpitations • Lightheadedness • Extreme fatigue • Shortness of breath • Chest pain To restore Ravelo's normal heart rhythm, Dr. Wilner performed an ablation, a procedure that carefully destroys the small areas of heart tissue causing the irregular beats. The future of wearable health tech Smartwatches and other wearable devices are changing how people monitor their health. Beyond Afib detection, they can track blood pressure, detect signs of sleep apnea and provide other key health insights. "The more informed a patient is about their own health, the more involved they become in their care," Dr. Wilner said. "That leads to better outcomes." Ravelo says he'll continue wearing his watch—and urging others to take their heart health seriously. "Be cognizant of your body. Listen to your body," he said. "It's a good thing I went to the doctor and it's a good thing I wore the watch." Heart health awareness In honor of Heart Month, Baptist Health is offering discounted 30-minute, non-invasive heart scans throughout February. For more information or to schedule a scan, visit
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Doctor Realizes He's Having a Heart Attack While Treating Heart Attack Patient
Here's one of those tales that defy belief – but which also comes with a happy ending. In treating a heart attack patient at Timmins and District Hospital (TADH) in Canada, emergency doctor Chris Loreto discovered his own heart was in danger. Having experienced repeated bouts of pain in the preceding months, often linked to exercise, Loreto had decided they were caused by acid reflux. However, the meds he was taking weren't making a difference. The discomfort peaked on November 12 during a hockey game, lingering around the doctor's shoulders. Again he shrugged off the pain, and went to work the next morning, a shift that involved helping to save the life of a man undergoing a massive heart attack. In speaking to the patient's wife, Loreto recognized a lot of the same symptoms. The man he had treated was also on medication for acid reflux – and that's when the penny dropped. These were actually two very similar heart attack cases. "His story was my story," says Loreto. Blood tests and an electrocardiogram confirmed the doctor's heart attack. Loreto has been on medical leave ever since, entering a rehab program which includes the insertion of tubes called stents inside his arteries to ensure proper blood flow. Timmins and District Hospital has publicized the incident to mark Heart Month 2025, raising awareness of cardiovascular health. Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death globally, taking close to 18 million lives each year. Heart attacks – or myocardial infarctions – happen when blood flow is impaired and oxygen can't reach the heart. This destroys heart muscle cells, which can cause permanent damage and even death. A sedentary lifestyle, a poor diet, smoking, and drinking can all raise heart attack risk. Genetics and environmental factors like air pollution can also play a critical role in increasing chances of heart problems. Loreto's father also had a heart attack at around the same age, for example. Scientists are continuing to investigate ways in which heart attacks might be prevented and ways in which the heart could be healed after an incident. They've even found patterns in the days most heart attacks tend to occur. Loreto credits regular exercise with strengthening his heart enough to avoid a worse outcome. Heart attacks can often come on suddenly, without any prior warnings – they don't always follow periods of chest or shoulder pain, but it's important to pay attention to possible warning signs (including nausea and shortness of breath). That's something Loreto says he didn't do: after three decades in the emergency room at TADH, he admits not taking his own health as seriously as that of his patients, and having a feeling of being 'bulletproof'. "We're wonderful at taking care of others and stink at taking care of ourselves," says Loreto. CDC Report Suggests Bird Flu Is Spreading Undetected to Humans Intense Flu Surge Gripping The US Is The Worst in Years, CDC Says Cars Make One Thing Even More Toxic Than Diesel Fumes, Study Reveals
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Chesapeake woman celebrates nearly 31 years as heart transplant survivor
CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — February is Heart Month, and for one woman in Hampton Roads, that has literal meaning. Tina Buck, 46, has the distinction of being one of the longest surviving heart transplant recipients in the world. And while it might be a sentimental gesture to give someone your heart this Valentine's Day, for Buck, it was literally true 31 years ago. 'It was T-ball, then softball, then cheerleading, then marching band,' Buck was an active teenager at Indian River High School in 1994, a member of the Marching Braves.'And then all of a sudden,' she said, 'it was like, 'Why can't I do this?'Out of nowhere, she was unable to do the things she loved. She went to doctors but was misdiagnosed.'I was in the marching band and couldn't keep up with everybody else,' she said. 'I didn't really know what was going on. My doctor first told me I was a lazy teenager. Then he told me I had exercise-induced asthma. Then he told me I had asthma.'Finally, a doctor noticed a bulging vein in her neck. A chest x-ray proved it was hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Her heart had become too big to contract.'You don't expect heart failure when you're a 15-year-old girl,' Buck said. 'You just don't expect that.'Months were then spent at CHKD just waiting for a heart. Across the U.S., between 4,000 and 5,000 people wait each year for that opportunity. Wait times can vary depending on blood type, sex, weight and where you live. So much also goes into making sure the donor and recipient are a good match.'Most people understand blood-type matching,' said Dr. Christopher Sciortino, program director of the heart transplant service at Sentara. 'There are other immunologic factors that donors and recipients have that need to match well, so that there's a very high likelihood that when a donor heart is placed inside of recipient, that that match will be successful.'It's an amazing procedure with a tight turnaround time. A heart can only survive outside a body for four hours. Tina's donor turned out to be 11-year-old Natalie from Asheville, North Carolina. Natalie was walking to the mailbox and was struck by two teenage drag racers. Natalie was deaf and didn't hear the cars coming. Now, her heart was about to beat again inside Buck. But it wasn't always a done deal.'Her father said no, her mother said yes,' Buck said. 'So I almost am not here today. Her mom finally said the key thing that made them switch over to yes was that Natalie always liked to help people. So that's what made her mom change her dad's mind.'Now, Buck has survived 31 years with that heart. The average survival rate is 15, but now medicine and treatments are making it possible to live longer, fuller lives.'I was able to do my first heart walk,' she said, 'and I did three miles and I've got my first medal for it. I'm so proud of that medal, because three miles to me is amazing.'And she stays close with Natalie's family, her aunt especially.'She calls me her heart niece and I call her my heart aunt,' Buck said. They even made her a scrapbook, full of articles from the Virginian-Pilot and their Asheville newspaper, detailing her and Natalie's journeys — gratitude filling the pages.'Being an organ donor is one of the most generous things that any person can choose to do,' Sciortino said she doesn't want to be defined by what happened, or think too much about it, but strives to look forward and focus on other things. But there is a constant reminder — on rainy days.'The very day before my heart transplant, there was a big rainbow in the sky,' Buck said. 'And my transplant coordinator made a wish on that rainbow. And so now, anytime I see a rainbow, I think it means there's someone getting a heart, or there's someone from heaven speaking down to me saying, 'Hey, everything's going to be OK.' Buck wants to stress the importance of becoming an organ donor. By doing so, you have the ability to save not one, but potentially seven or eight lives. To find out more about being an organ donor, visit To learn more about Sentara Health's organ transplant program, go to Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Inside KELOLAND: Heart Month
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – February is Heart Month across the United States. Former Governor in spotlight as Secretary of Homeland Security In this week's Inside KELOLAND, find out why the 'Go Red for Women Gala' was so important to one Sioux Falls woman and hear from a Sanford Health cardiologist on how to keep your heart healthy. After that, you'll hear from KELOLAND's Dan Santella about his exclusive tour of the State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. Lastly, take a look at the Sioux Falls Burger Battle winner and preview another food battle in Sioux Falls. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
