Category: Wellness

Heart Attack Symptoms and Early Warning Signs

A heart attack is a medical emergency. If you have symptoms of a heart attack, call 911 or your local emergency number right away.

  • DO NOT try to drive yourself to the hospital.
  • DO NOT WAIT. You are at greatest risk of sudden death in the early hours of a heart attack.

Chest pain is the most common symptom of a heart attack. You may feel the pain in only one part of your body, or it may move from your chest to your arms, shoulder, neck, teeth, jaw, belly area, or back. The pain can be severe or mild. It can feel like:

  • A tight band around the chest
  • Bad indigestion
  • Something heavy sitting on your chest
  • Squeezing or heavy pressure

The pain usually lasts longer than 20 minutes. Rest and a medicine called nitroglycerin may not completely relieve the pain of a heart attack. Symptoms may also go away and come back. Other symptoms of a heart attack can include:

  • Anxiety
  • Cough
  • Fainting
  • Light-headedness, dizziness
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Palpitations (feeling like your heart is beating too fast or irregularly)
  • Shortness of breath
  • Sweating, which may be very heavy

Some people (the elderly, people with diabetes, and women) may have little or no chest pain. Or, they may have unusual symptoms (shortness of breath, fatigue, and weakness). A “silent heart attack” is a heart attack with no symptoms.

via Heart attack – PubMed Health.

Joint Pain at Work

Joint Pain at Work – That creaking you hear may not be your co-workers Halloween skeleton decoration but their actual knees, hips, wrists and shoulders.  Joint pain at work can be very SCARY… and painful… and costly.  Arthritis, one example of joint pain, is the leading cause of work disability.  In 2007, the annual cost of arthritis and other rheumatic conditions was $128 billion.

via The NIOSH Science Blog has been updated: Joint Pain at Work.

Smoking Raises Surgery Risks

Smokers Are Nearly 40% More Likely Than Nonsmokers to Die After Surgery

Smokers who undergo surgery are more likely than nonsmokers to have complications or to die shortly after surgical procedures, according to a study. The risk of death within 30 days of a wide variety of surgeries was nearly 40% higher in smokers than in nonsmokers, says Alparslan Turan, MD, associate professor of anesthesiology at the Cleveland Clinic. There was also an increase in cardiovascular complications,” Turan says. In his study comparing more than 82,000 smokers with nonsmoking patients, the smokers were:

  • 57% more likely to have cardiac arrest
  • 80% more likely to have a heart attack
  • 73% more likely to have a stroke

The risk of pneumonia was double [for smokers],” Turan says.The patients had a range of common surgeries, such as colon procedures, breast surgeries, appendix removal, and hysterectomy. Smokers were also more likely to contract infections and to be put on mechanical ventilation after surgery because of complications.

via Smoking Raises Surgery Risks.

How To Prevent and Control Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors

You can prevent and control many coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors with lifestyle changes and medicines. Examples of these controllable risk factors include high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, and overweight and obesity. Only a few risk factors—such as age, gender, and family history—can’t be controlled.

To reduce your risk of CHD and heart attack, try to control each risk factor you can. The good news is that many lifestyle changes help control several CHD risk factors at the same time. For example, physical activity may lower your blood pressure, help control diabetes and prediabetes, reduce stress, and help control your weight.

via How To Prevent and Control Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors – NHLBI, NIH.

Aging Workers

Are there any specific health and safety concerns related to aging workers?

A few. Most studies say that older workers tend to have fewer accidents, but when an older worker does get injured, their injuries are often more severe. They also may take longer to get better. Plus, the types of injuries can be different. Younger workers tend to get more eye or hand injuries, while older workers who have been working for many years report more back injuries.

via Aging Workers : OSH Answers.

Healthy Aging

People in the U.S. are living longer than ever before. Many seniors live active and healthy lives. But there’s no getting around one thing: as we age, our bodies and minds change. There are things you can do to stay healthy and active as you age:

  • Eat a balanced diet
  • Keep your mind and body active
  • Don’t smoke
  • Get regular checkups
  • Practice safety habits

via Healthy Aging: MedlinePlus.

Prevent Poisoning

Chemicals in and around the home can poison people or pets and can cause long-term health effects. Every 13 seconds, a poison control center in the United States answers a call about a possible poisoning. More than 90% of these exposures occur in the home. Poisoning can result from medicines, pesticides, household cleaning products, carbon monoxide, and lead.

via CDC – Healthy Homes | Health Topics | Poisoning Prevention.

Prescription Drug Overdoses — a U.S. Epidemic

In 2007, approximately 27,000 unintentional drug overdose deaths occurred in the United States, one death every 19 minutes. Prescription drug abuse is the fastest growing drug problem in the United States. The increase in unintentional drug overdose death rates in recent years has been driven by increased use of a class of prescription drugs called opioid analgesics.

via CDC Grand Rounds: Prescription Drug Overdoses — a U.S. Epidemic.

Noise and Hearing Loss Prevention

Occupational hearing loss is the most common work-related injury in the United States.  Approximately 22 million U.S. workers exposed to hazardous noise levels at work, and an additional 9 million exposed to ototoxic chemicals. An estimated $242 million is spent annually on worker’s compensation for hearing loss disability.

via CDC – Noise and Hearing Loss Prevention – NIOSH Workplace Safety and Health Topic.