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Cardiac asthma is an attack of suffocation that occurs due to left ventricular failure. The main causes of cardiac asthma are diseases of the heart and blood vessels (heart disease, cardiosclerosis, hypertension). An attack can occur not only due to disruption of the cardiovascular system, but also during the course of viral and infectious diseases in the body, insufficient blood circulation in the brain. Often, cardiac asthma occurs in people who are 55-60 years old, but there are cases of attacks in young women, men, adolescents and even children.
What factors can trigger an attack?
The main cause of an attack of cardiac asthma is a malfunction of the left ventricle of the heart, as a result of which blood stagnates in the lungs. Due to excess blood, metabolism and gas exchange between the body and the external environment (gas exchange) is disturbed. With an increased content of carbon dioxide, the respiratory center in the brain is irritated, and a person begins to experience severe shortness of breath.
With acquired or congenital heart disease, ischemia, hypertension, acute and chronic inflammation of the kidneys, there are attacks of cardiac asthma. The main reasons provoking the appearance of cardiac asthma can be: strong physical exertion; stress; depression; fever. Also, an attack can be caused due to the abuse of food and water at night.
Cardiac asthma is most often observed in adults, but no one can be one hundred percent insured against a serious illness. The attack often begins at night, this is due to the fact that when a person lies in a dream, the blood begins to go more intensively to the left ventricle, an increase in central venous pressure is observed. In the absence of adequate ejection from the left ventricle, the likelihood of shortness of breath and suffocation increases several times.
According to statistics, most patients with inflammation of the kidneys suffer from attacks of cardiac asthma due to a surge in pressure in the arteries. A sharp increase in blood pressure in traditional medicine is called hypertension and is one of the factors that provoke an attack.
Primary and secondary symptoms
An attack of cardiac asthma does not always occur suddenly: doctors distinguish primary and secondary symptoms. The initial symptoms of cardiac suffocation include: difficulty breathing; feeling of heaviness in the chest; dyspnea; dry cough after physical activity (coughing fits most often worse when a person is in a horizontal position). Primary symptoms last 2 to 4 days.
Secondary symptoms include:
- shortness of breath, suffocation;
- insomnia;
- increased sweating;
- cough with pink sputum;
- pallor of the skin;
- gallop rhythm;
- dry wheezing;
- tachycardia.
An attack of cardiac asthma lasts from 2-3 minutes to 2-4 hours. At this time, the surrounding people should provide first aid in order to alleviate the suffering of the patient. If a person’s skin has turned gray or dark blue, the veins in the neck have swollen, a weak pulse during probing, blood pressure has dropped, weakness, orthopnea and blood stagnation in the veins of the arms and legs is observed, an ambulance team should be called to provide qualified medical care.
Due to prolonged symptoms, the victim may experience pulmonary edema, so the patient should, after an attack and symptomatic therapy, contact a cardiologist and undergo a complete examination of the body.
Emergency first aid for an attack of cardiac asthma
The first step is to call an ambulance and inform the dispatcher about the age and location of the victim. It is also desirable to talk about the symptoms that are observed in the patient. Then you should unbutton the shirt, remove the belt, tie and other accessories that block the person’s breathing.
After that, you need to open a window in the room so that the victim can breathe in fresh air, while it is advisable to turn on the fan or wave a notebook, cardboard paper or a hat in front of the person’s face. These manipulations are needed to eliminate oxygen starvation in the brain.
The patient should not be in a horizontal position, he should be put on a couch or bed so that his back rests on the back of a chair or pillow. If a person becomes ill on the street, he should be seated on a bench, a high curb or a stump.
Important during first aid for cardiac asphyxia is a special treatment of the oral cavity. If the patient accumulates a large amount of foam and sputum in the mouth, it must be removed with cotton pads or other sterile items. It is not recommended to do this with your fingers, as this is unhygienic and the victim may reflexively clench his jaw due to pain shock.
To facilitate the work of the heart, normalize blood circulation and prevent pulmonary edema, you need to apply tight tourniquets on the lower and upper limbs (one limb should be without a tourniquet). After 10-15 minutes, the tourniquets should be shifted and the other limb should be left free. This manipulation must be carried out simultaneously, and the tourniquets on the lower extremities must be fixed at a distance of 15 centimeters from the groin. On the upper limbs, the tourniquet is installed at a distance of 10 centimeters from the shoulder joint.
If the procedure was carried out correctly, then the pulse will be felt just below the applied bandage. The skin due to manipulation should become red-bluish. The duration of the procedure varies from 5 to 30 minutes. During an attack of cardiac asthma, tourniquets can be replaced with hot baths for the lower extremities. This manipulation will help reduce blood flow to the heart.
If the person is not getting better, they should be taken to the hospital as soon as possible for medical attention. Even if the victim’s health has improved, it is necessary to consult a specialist and undergo an examination to find out the cause of suffocation. After the patient is delivered to a medical facility, a cardiologist will conduct a general diagnosis of the whole organism. First of all, the specialist will talk with the patient, learn about the symptoms and the attack, then the doctor will need the results of the tests: electrocardiogram, chest x-ray, ultrasound diagnostics of the heart, magnetic resonance imaging to detect problems and hidden diseases. After the examination and obtaining the results of the research, the patient is sent to the attending physician, who makes an accurate diagnosis and prescribes a comprehensive course of therapy.
First aid for cardiac asthma
Only a person with a medical education can give a person medicines during an attack, so as not to aggravate his condition and not cause complications. If there is a health worker among the surrounding people, he can check the correct application of the tourniquets, measure the pressure in the arteries, and monitor the pulse. To avoid pulmonary edema, you need to soak a bandage in ethyl alcohol or vodka and put it on the patient’s face.
The arriving ambulance team will try to alleviate the patient’s condition and first of all give the person one tablet of Nitroglycerin or Validol – the medicine must be placed under the tongue and sucked. These medicines are aimed at dilating the vessels of the heart, but they cannot be used for systolic pressures below 100 mm Hg.
The patient will be helped by inhalation with humidified oxygen, which is passed through a defoamer. Only doctors know the required dosage, while they take into account the person’s weight and well-being. Oxygen inhalations are used to supply air to human cells and brain. A warm mustard bath shows itself well, which reduces stress on the heart. Doctors during first aid for cardiac asthma can perform bloodletting, the volume of which should not exceed 400 milliliters. This manipulation is prescribed if the patient has normal pressure in the arteries, and only after the diagnosis of the body.
Prior to the arrival of the team, you need to prepare the following medicines in solutions: narcotic analgesic; diuretic drugs; cardiac glycoside. Effective medicines are “Sodium Chloride”, “Eufillin”, “Pentamine”, “Suprastin” and “Dimedrol”.
If the patient has tachycardia, he should intravenously inject a solution of “Strophanthin” with “Sodium Chloride”. The dosage is calculated by a specialist. Medicines are administered very slowly so that the patient does not become dizzy and faint. With normal blood pressure, it is desirable to use a substance called Lasix.
Prevention of an attack can serve as: the transition to a balanced diet; avoidance of strong physical and emotional stress; periodic examinations by a cardiologist. Providing first aid for cardiac asthma will alleviate the condition of the victim and wait for the arrival of doctors. Knowing how to properly help a person during an attack, you can not only minimize his symptoms, but also prevent serious consequences, up to saving a person’s life.