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A few years ago, Nikhil Gupta (name changed), a
young man in his thirties, did his regular
workout on the treadmill at a sports club. After
finishing a gruelling exercise routine, he came
out of the gym, felt dizzy and collapsed. People
there tried to give him cardiac massage and
lifted him to a nearby ICCU but he could not be
revived and died in the prime of his life.
Although a regular exerciser, he was a heavy
smoker. His mother had undergone bypass surgery
due to multiple blockages in her coronary
arteries at age of 48 years (also called
premature coronary artery disease).
How is it that the same exercises that are
supposed to help protect the heart actually lead
to a heart attack?
CAN PHYSICAL EXERCISE CAUSE A
HEART ATTACK?
In young people, (below age 25 to 30 years) the
usual reason for sudden death related to
vigorous exercise is the rare presence of a
structural or electrical defect in the heart
since birth or childhood which has gone
unnoticed or undetected.
However in people over 30, it is usually the
fatty deposits on the inner lining of coronary
arteries which supply blood to heart muscle,
that are the cause. During and after vigorous
(and especially unaccustomed) exertion, there is
a surge in stress hormones like adrenaline and
increased shear stress on coronary arteries.
This may cause rupture of the surface of these
fatty deposits (plaques). Also, vigorous
exercise leads to the activation of blood cells
called platelets. These can clump together and
initiate clot formation at |
