As winter sets in, heart diseases show rising trend

PATNA: As temperature has started falling with each passing day, health issues have started increasing. Apart from common cold and flu, cases of cardiac issues and stroke are also on the rise even as health experts have advised people to take all necessary precautions.
Doctors say there has been nearly 10% increase in such cases and the number of patients may increase after further drop in the temperature.
Head of cardiothoracic surgery at AIIMS-Patna, Dr Sanjeev Kumar, said people come to the hospital with high blood pressure, which leads to several health issues, including ischemia of heart.
“In this situation, blood flow to the heart decreases, leading to fall in amount of oxygen the heart muscle receives. Cholesterol also increases because of two reasons – constriction of arteries and rich diet with ghee and butter.
He advised people, especially those with history of diabetes and blood pressure, to have their medicine on time and if need be, increase the dose of BP medicines after consulting a doctor.
Former superintendent of Patna Medical College and Hospital, Dr Rajiv Ranjan Prasad, said increase in the cases of stroke was also being witnessed, leading to different kinds of paralysis and paresis.
There are cases of monoplegia in which one limb gets paralysed, hemiplegia in which one side of the body gets paralysed and quadriplegia in which both the limbs and legs get paralysed. “There are cases in which people go into coma too. Some people suffer from facial paralysis,” Dr Prasad said.