CAD Gold project to cover 100 PHCs in Karnataka

Under ‘Cardiology at Doorsteps’ (CAD Foundation), an initiative of Dr Padmanabh Kamath serving as Head of Cardiology Department-KMC, CAD Gold project was launched with the involvement of rural Primary Health Centres (PHCs) in order to save lives of those suffering a cardiac arrest.

The CAD will hand over third generation thrombolytic (Reteplase), a clot buster, to the PHCs to save lives. “We will chalk out a strategy of identifying and training the sensitive PHCs across Karnataka. In the first phase, 100 PHCs across 320 CAD network beneficiaries will be covered,” Dr Padmanabha Kamath told DH.

The PHCs in Jayapura in Koppa taluk in Chikkamagaluru district and Araga in Theerthahalli taluk in Shivamogga were the first beneficiaries of project. Doctors, trained to use the expensive drug, were advised to use them on needy patients with a heart attack.

“Within days after launching CAD Gold, a breadwinner of a family suffered heart attack and low BP in a village which did not have any tertiary health care unit,” Dr Kamath recollected.

“The patient received thrombolytic agent within minutes of arrival and thus his life was saved,” Dr Kamath stressed.

The first one hour after a heart attack is called ‘Golden hour’. It is often a challenge to follow this dictum particularly in rural areas. Apart from the distance factor, there are hurdles like lack of awareness, delay in diagnosis, non-availability of ECG, dearth of skilled doctor, lack of ambulance facility, poor infrastructure and telemedicine facility.

When a patient suffers a heart attack, if the nearest tertiary centre is more than 120 minutes away by road, then it is prudent to administer clot buster (thrombolytic) on site and then refer the patient to hospitals after stabilising his heart condition.

This strategy, ‘pharmacoinvasive strategy’ is used extensively in many countries. States like Goa, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have implemented this in their STEMI (ST segment elevation myocardial infraction or heart attack) programme.

The project is ideal for neighbouring districts like Kodagu, Uttara Kannada and Chikkamagaluru, where the travel time to reach the nearest hospital is more than 120 minutes, Kamath added.