'Comorbidities a major cause of poor prognosis in heart patients'

Indians tend to get heart attacks one to two decades earlier compared to people of other nationalities, an expert said

Comorbidities are one of the major causes of a poor prognosis of heart problems. They also affect the treatment of heart ailments.

An eminent panel of speakers discussed the risk of heart diseases in patients suffering from comorbid conditions in an event curated by DH Brandspot and Manipal Hospitals, on Thursday. The speakers included interventional cardiologists - Dr Mohan Kumar H N, Columbia Asia Hospital, Sarjapur; Dr Ranganath Nayak P, Vikram Hospital, Millers Road; Dr Ranjan Shetty, HoD, Cardiology, Manipal Hospital, Old Airport Road; and Dr Davinder Singh Chadha, Manipal Hospital, Old Airport Road.

The discussion was moderated by Director of Forest Creative Communications Ranjit Padmakumar. "High cholesterol can lead to depositions in blood vessels leading to coronary heart disease (CAD). Uncontrolled hypertension can also damage heart muscles. They can lead to diastolic dysfunction, and relaxation capacity of the heart can come down," said Dr Mohan Kumar H N.

Dr Ranjan Shetty, said, "Comorbidities, as the word suggests, is something that is associated. Unfortunately, Indians tend to get heart attacks one to two decades earlier compared to people of other nationalities. While they get heart attacks when they're 50-55 years old, we get it when we are 35-40 years of age. This is because of comorbidities. Indians are diabetic by 20-25 years of age compared to the West who get it by 50 years."

Smoking, lack of exercise, sedentary lifestyle are factors to blame, said doctors. "Life expectancy is much lower in Indians compared to western countries. Obesity is another comorbidity. These are some of the most common comorbidities we see among heart patients," he said.