Cardiac concerns cause uptick in ECGs at Karnataka govt hospitals

Bengaluru: In just four months between April and July this financial year, nearly 2.31 lakh ECGs were performed under the Puneeth Rajkumar Hrudaya Jyothi scheme across 86 government health centres in the state, which are more than 50% of the total ECGs performed in the 2024-25 fiscal, according to data available with the health department.

Of the 2.31 lakh ECGs, as many as 3,018 were found to be critical and eventually, 167 deaths were recorded. In 2024-25, of the 4.49 lakh ECGs performed, a total of 6,767 were found to be critical and 608 deaths were recorded.

The scheme — launched in 2023 in memory of popular actor Puneeth Rajkumar who died due to a sudden heart attack — is being implemented across 86 government hospitals in the state. It aims at providing timely treatment to people suffering cardiac arrest. 

Doctors at district and taluk levels said the number of people seeking cardiac advice at government health centres saw an increase from May.

This uptick is also attributed to the panic following media reports on sudden deaths due to heart attack, especially among youngsters, in the state.

"The number of patients showing up at our outpatient department definitely increased after the news reports. Earlier, at Bengaluru centre, we used to receive close to 1,600 patients a day and that went up to 2,000. At Mysore it went up from 750 to around 1,000 and in Kalburgi it went up from 450 to 600 patients a day. However, from the first week of August, the number has gradually come down to the normal figures," said Dr Ravindranath K S, director, Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences.

Even though the number of patients visiting cardiology departments for medical advice has now come down compared to May and June, the number is still high compared to the last few years, cardiologists said. 

"Owing to the increase in awareness, the numbers are still high. Now, many patients with even slight arm or neck pain approach us to rule out any cardiac issue," said PRLN Prasad, interventional cardiologist at a private hospital in Kengeri.

Many people repeatedly visit doctors and take appointments just to seek advice on how to avoid heart-related issues.

"People now seek heart care for early warning signs (like irregular heartbeat or swelling), young-age attacks, Covid or vaccine-related worries, and family history. Most want to know how to prevent issues, even if genetics plays a role,” said Dr Sreekanth Shetty, director and HoD-cardiology at a private hospital in Marathahalli.