(LifeWire) - If someone is complaining about chest pain, upper-arm discomfort, shortness of breath, nausea, lightheadedness or is breaking out in a cold sweat, it may mean a heart attack. If this happens, it is crucial that you contact emergency medical services (EMS) as soon as possible.
"Time is tissue," the saying goes, and that means the sooner the person gets help, the less damage there is to heart tissue. Calling 911 within three to five minutes and getting treatment within the first hour gives the best opportunity for survival.
Do not drive the person to the hospital unless there is absolutely no other alternative. If you're the one having the heart attack, do not take yourself to the hospital. Taking someone to the hospital by car not only wastes valuable time, it also renders the driver incapable of giving any help while they are behind the wheel.
In an ambulance, paramedics monitor and care for the patient while en route. And when those patients arrive in the emergency room, they're more likely to be treated sooner.
In a few cities, EMS providers can even perform an electrocardiogram (ECG), which is normally done in the emergency room to locate artery blockages and monitor heart rhythm. An early ECG saves precious minutes by allowing the patient to go straight from the ambulance to the cardiac catheterization laboratory, where blocked arteries can be reopened.
Even if they're not equipped with ECGs, EMS personnel can mean the difference between life and death -- or between surviving versus thriving -- by offering several other immediate services, depending on the patient's condition:
- Giving clot-busting medications that can stop a heart attack in progress
- Shocking the heart back in to normal rhythm using a defibrillator
- Delivering the patient quickly to an emergency room
Here's more on how to survive a heart attack.
Sources:
"Frequently Asked Questions About Heart Attack." nhlbi.nih.gov. 2008. National Institutes of Health. 28 Oct. 2008. <http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/actintime/faq/faq.htm>.
"Heart Attack ." texasheart.org. Aug. 2008. Texas Heart Institute. 28 Oct. 2008. <http://www.texasheart.org/HIC/Topics/Cond/HeartAttack.cfm>.
"Heart Attack First Aid." nlm.nih.gov. 19 Feb. 2008. National Institutes of Health. 28 Oct. 2008. <http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000063.htm>.
"Heart Attack, Stroke and Cardiac Arrest Warning Signs." americanheart.org. 2008. American Heart Association. 28 Oct. 2008. <http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3053>.
"Heart Attack Symptoms and Warning Signs." americanheart.org. 2008. American Heart Association. 28 Oct. 2008. <http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4595>.
Ting, Henry H., et al. "Implementation and Integration of Prehospital ECGs Into Systems of Care for Acute Coronary Syndrome." Circulation 118(2008):1066-79. 28 Oct. 2008. <http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/full/118/10/1066>.
