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When we hear that someone has suffered a heart attack, we automatically think of the heart. Meanwhile, a heart attack can develop in various organs of our body.
A heart attack as a general medical term means a type of necrosis caused by an extreme restriction of blood flow through the tissues of an organ. Due to the mechanism of its formation, there are two basic types of infarcts:
– a pale or ischemic infarction occurs as a result of restriction or stoppage of blood flow in the arteries that supply blood to a given area of our body
– red, hyperemic or haemorrhagic infarction is the result of stopping the outflow of venous blood from a given area.
Ischemic infarction it occurs most often in the heart, brain, mesentery, spleen, anterior pituitary gland, in the placenta, lymph nodes and in the prostate gland.
Hyperemic infarction it usually arises in the intestines, lungs, cortex, testes, ovaries, accessory spleen, and tumors developing on peduncles.
Both types of heart attack can occur in the kidney and, more rarely, in the liver.
Heart attacks most often occur as a result of thrombosis, atherosclerosis, vasculitis, embolism, mechanical pressure on venous or arterial vessels, neoplastic infiltration, contraction of muscles in the artery wall as a result of sudden stress (severe nervousness).
The most common non-myocardial infarcts include:
Lung infarction
He attacks suddenly. We feel shortness of breath, breathing becomes faster, sometimes we feel dull pain behind the breastbone and fear. Occasionally, fever and cough may also occur. These symptoms are quite similar to a heart attack.
A pulmonary infarction causes a clot or blood clots to form in the veins in the lower body. They can travel with the blood to the vessels in the lungs. Completely cutting off a section of the lung from the blood supply can cause necrosis in the section of the lung
The risk of a pulmonary infarction increases if we are prone to blood clots. The diseases that contribute to a lung infarction include phlebitis, chronic lung and heart disease, and some cancers. Women using old generation oral contraceptives and pregnant are also at risk. The risk of developing the disease also increases in overweight and permanently immobilized people.
Pulmonary embolism leads to hypoxia in the lung area. Depending on how many vessels are clogged, this can lead to permanent lung damage, which is associated with hypoxia in the body. The heart must then work much harder, which can lead to its failure. Pulmonary embolism can be fatal in people with heart failure. The disease is life-threatening and must always be treated in hospital. The sooner we get there, the better the chances of recovery.
There are different ways to prevent a lung infarction. Before anything else, you should start walking or exercising in a lying position as soon as possible after operations.
Treatment of a pulmonary infarction usually consists of dissolving the blood clots with the right medicines. Sometimes surgical intervention is needed to remove them. Often, when treating a pulmonary infarction, drugs are used to strengthen the heart efficiency and blood circulation, as well as painkillers. Air breathing with increased oxygen content is also used, which facilitates its absorption by the body.
Kidney attack
The most common causes of kidney infarction are blockages caused by the narrowing of the left venous opening, atrial fibrillation, bacterial endocarditis, and detachment of atherosclerotic plaques. Other causes include thrombosis caused by atherosclerosis, renal artery aneurysm, polyarteritis nodosa, etc. Clinical symptoms of renal infarction are most often in the form of sudden pain in the lumbar region. The pain may be accompanied by nausea, vomiting and fever. About half of the patients have hematuria and proteinuria. The symptoms are similar to those of renal colic. Minor kidney infarctions may be asymptomatic.
Sometimes one kidney develops multiple infarcts, and a cyst forms at the site of the post-infarction scar. Acute obstruction of the main renal artery stem leads to infarction of the entire kidney, usually fatal. If the process of closure of the artery is slow, then atrophic changes occur and the kidney noticeably shrinks. Symptoms of kidney infarction due to a thrombus or an infarction of the main stem of the renal artery (or one of its branches) depend on the underlying disease in which the vessel obstructed, its size and the speed of ischemia.
Embolism and mesenteric infarction
The most common symptom is sudden and sharp pain in the area around the navel, but the abdomen is usually soft. Vomiting and diarrhea may appear. Some people develop shock. Sometimes bloody or tarry stools are seen. Anyone with these symptoms should go to the hospital as soon as possible. Usually, an operation is necessary to remove the necrotic part of the intestine.
If the patient is admitted to the hospital early enough, the prognosis for the future is good.
Also read: Heart attack without a happy ending
Brain infarction
A cerebral infarction is often called a stroke. The closure of the anterior cerebral artery causes paresis, impaired sensation on the opposite side. There may also be urinary incontinence, speech disorders, neglect of the opposite side, behavioral disorders, apathy. The occlusion of the middle cerebral artery leads to paresis, sensory disturbances, and amblyopia on the side opposite to the closure. In addition, there may be a disorder of speech, its understanding, writing, reading, impairment of precise, purposeful movements, disturbance of spatial vision, neglect of the opposite side of the body. A stroke within the posterior artery of the brain leads to visual impairment, blindness, inability to understand written words, memory impairment, sensation, pain, and disturbed eye movement.
The diagnosis is usually made after a CT scan or an MRI scan. Neurological examinations, blood tests, fundus and cerebrospinal fluid tests are also performed.
Treatment of ischemic stroke is based on the administration of acetylsalicylic acid, thrombolytic drugs (they dissolve intravascular clots). Rehabilitation is extremely important in the treatment of stroke, and it should be started as early as possible. It affects the improvement of fitness, muscle strength, movement, prevents muscle contractures and depression. Sometimes it is necessary to take antidepressants. The risk of another stroke is greatest in the first 30 days.
Testicular infarction
It can develop between the ages of 14 and 18, when a young man has a flowering condition and, for example, engages in sports strenuously or rides a lot. In fact, a testicular infarction should be understood as a sharp torsion of the spermatic cord with the rotation of the testicle around its axis. Then there is sudden, very severe pain (often at night) with rapidly increasing swelling of the contents of the scrotum. These symptoms are accompanied by nausea and vomiting. As soon as such ailments appear, you must go to the emergency room at the hospital as soon as possible. The doctor should surgically unscrew the testicle within 4-6 hours, because twisting the cord leads to a break in blood circulation, which may result in a testicular infarction. Then it is no longer salvageable and must be amputated. It is true that the loss of one testicle does not threaten fertility, but many men are very emotional about the procedure and treat amputation as “diminishing their own masculinity. After some time, they may decide to implant a Teflon testicle prosthesis.
Text: Anna Jarosz
Also read: A heart attack is a failure of prevention