World Heart Day (WHD) is celebrated all across the world on 29th September to create mass awareness about the essentials of cardiac care and promote heart-healthy habits. “The burden due to CVD in India is remarkably higher than what is being experienced at a global level,” reveals a recent Lancet study. With the aim of educating people about the importance of maintaining a healthy heart through lifestyle changes, TOI Medithon World Heart Symposium issued in public interest by Medtronic focused on the crucial aspects of cardiac care. Titled TOI World Heart Day Symposium 2023: Every Beat Counts, the day-long digital seminar brought together luminaries for the arena of cardiology and included various panel discussions on an array of topics starting from patient-centric care in cardiology to caring for your heart and more. Here’s a bird’s eye view on some of the most enriching sessions of TOI Medithon’s World Heart Day Symposium 2023.
How to care for your heart
Caring for your heart is essential for a long and healthy life. Prioritizing your heart health through lifestyle changes such as working out daily, maintaining a healthy diet and managing stress can go a long way in ensuring a healthy and long life. The panellists for this session on cardiac care included Dr. Ashwin B Mehta, Director of Cardiology at Jaslok Hospital & Research Centre, Dr. Praveen Chandra, Cardiologist and Chairman of Interventional Cardiology at Medanta Medicity, Dr. Rajeev Vijaykumar Menon, Clinical Director & HoD Cardiology, AIG Hospitals, and Dr. OP Yadava, Chief Executive Officer, National Heart Institute.
Shedding light on this topic, Dr. Mehta says, “Anthropologically, humans are descendants of apes … so we should be largely vegetarian. A non-vegetarian diet is generally not good,” said Dr Mehta. He recommends a balanced, largely vegetarian diet, minimal consumption of milk and milk products like ghee, butter and cheese, moderate intake of carbohydrate and protein. “Avoid the yellow of an egg, red meat, refined sugars and too much salt. Four to seven grams per day is adequate,” suggests Dr. Mehta.
Another panellist, Dr. Menon focussed on the fact that there is an undeniable link between
obesity and CVDs. “Obesity nowadays is almost a pandemic,” he says. “Just look around, you will find nine out of 10 people have a potbelly. That’s a kind of abdominal obesity, which is dangerous. And this pandemic of obesity is driving diabetes, heart disease, and all the other problems which we are seeing.” “By cutting out sugar, one can reduce weight by around 15-25kg. And learning to stay off sugars is a good habit that should start from childhood itself,” he adds. According to Dr. Menon, regular workout is an essential aspect of battling obesity. “Previously it was thought that just walking or running is good enough. But actually you need a combination —not just the aerobic exercises, but also some strengthening and stretching exercises,” he says.
Stress, smoking and alcohol are potential risk factors for the development of cardiac conditions. “If somebody has diabetes or blood pressure, and is also smoking, he is three times more at risk compared to a person who only has high blood pressure or is just diabetic,” says Dr. Chandra. His recommendations for stress management include practising yoga and meditation and taking time out for relaxation and family interactions. He also suggests picking up a hobby for stress management, and avoiding long sessions of TV and video games.
Patient-centric care in the realm of cardiology
This session focusses on a collaborative approach where healthcare providers engage patients in shared decision-making, taking into account their values and goals. This goes beyond just treating cardiovascular conditions, and addresses each patient’s unique needs. The distinguished panel of for this discussion included Dr. Rishi Sethi, Professor, Dept of Cardiology, King George’s Medical University, Dr. Prashant Jagtap, Senior Interventional cardiologist, Director of Viveka Hospitals and Dr Santosh Kumar Dora, Senior Cardiologist & Cardiac Electrophysiologist, Asian Heart Institute.
Sharing his thoughts on the subject, Dr. Sethi said, “Doctors are now realising that until we put the patient’s needs into consideration—beyond a narrow focus on his particular disease — the outcomes that we want to achieve for our patients may not be very fruitful.”
The essence of patient-centric approach is factoring in the age, gender, the psychological and social profile of a patient as well as their educational qualification and economic status while tailoring a treatment plan. Shedding light on the topic, Dr. Jagtap shares, “When you treat a disease, you win or you lose, but when you treat a person, I guarantee, irrespective of outcome, you win. That is the essence of patient-centred care.”
Patient awareness about the risks of the treatment is crucial in the arena of cardiac care. Lack of information has often proved to be a friction point between patients and hospitals. “All cardiologists agree that even with the best possible care, there is 2-10% risk of mortality,” says Dr. Sethi, adding, “You have to inform patients that what doctors are offering is an 8% advantage versus not undergoing a procedure like angioplasty.”
Sharing a similar thought, Dr Jagtap observes that doing an angioplasty is only half the process done. “Ensuring that the patient takes medications diligently and comes for follow up accounts for the remaining 50%. About 10-20% of patients stop the medications after one or two years, unless you have properly explained things to them.” These measures not only empower patients but also enhance the overall quality of care.
Heart care: Future direction and emerging technologies
The future of heart care is poised for remarkable advancements driven by revolutionising technologies such as telemedicine, AI, machine learning, wearable devices, sophisticated sensors and more. In this session, stalwarts from the field of cardiology share their thoughts on how fusion of technologies promises a future where heart care is not only more effective but also more personalized, accessible, and preventative. The panels were Dr. Arun Gopi, Director, Cath Lab & Senior Consultant Interventional Cardiologist & Electrophysiologist, Metromed Hospital, Dr. Jagdish S Hiremath, President of the Cardiology Society of India, and Dr. Balbir Singh, Chairman, Cardiac Sciences, Max Super Speciality Hospital.
Dr Gopi has been at the forefront of adopting emerging technologies in electrophysiology. He shared how the conventional pacemaker has now lost prominence. “In a leadless pacemaker the whole pacemaker circuitry has been minimised to the size of a vitamin capsule. So it just requires a single day procedure of one puncture, through which we can implant the pacemaker — no scar, no bump on the anterior chest wall and the patient goes home the next day. And most of these devices can also be monitored via satellite via remote monitoring,” he says.
On the other hand, Dr. Hiremath shed light on implantable sensors and the role they play in heart care. Explaining the need for home monitoring devices for tracking syncope, he recalls, “In the past, if a patient fainted at home, he would often come to us hours — or even days — later when it would be impossible to figure out what had gone wrong.”
At the initial stage, these devices were cumbersome and only yielded data for 24 hours, which was too inadequate to make any conclusive decision. “Now we implant sensors in such patients. And they can stay inside the skin for as long as 1-2 years and keep recording the ECGs. All the monitoring takes place in the iCloud. So, with this wider data procuring, there is a good chance that we will pick up on abnormalities,” adds Dr Hiremath.
The views/suggestions/opinions expressed in the article are individual opinions of doctors for public awareness and information purposes only. This article and the views expressed herein is not to be treated as a medical advice. Please consult your doctor for any health related advice.
How to care for your heart
Caring for your heart is essential for a long and healthy life. Prioritizing your heart health through lifestyle changes such as working out daily, maintaining a healthy diet and managing stress can go a long way in ensuring a healthy and long life. The panellists for this session on cardiac care included Dr. Ashwin B Mehta, Director of Cardiology at Jaslok Hospital & Research Centre, Dr. Praveen Chandra, Cardiologist and Chairman of Interventional Cardiology at Medanta Medicity, Dr. Rajeev Vijaykumar Menon, Clinical Director & HoD Cardiology, AIG Hospitals, and Dr. OP Yadava, Chief Executive Officer, National Heart Institute.
Shedding light on this topic, Dr. Mehta says, “Anthropologically, humans are descendants of apes … so we should be largely vegetarian. A non-vegetarian diet is generally not good,” said Dr Mehta. He recommends a balanced, largely vegetarian diet, minimal consumption of milk and milk products like ghee, butter and cheese, moderate intake of carbohydrate and protein. “Avoid the yellow of an egg, red meat, refined sugars and too much salt. Four to seven grams per day is adequate,” suggests Dr. Mehta.
Another panellist, Dr. Menon focussed on the fact that there is an undeniable link between
obesity and CVDs. “Obesity nowadays is almost a pandemic,” he says. “Just look around, you will find nine out of 10 people have a potbelly. That’s a kind of abdominal obesity, which is dangerous. And this pandemic of obesity is driving diabetes, heart disease, and all the other problems which we are seeing.” “By cutting out sugar, one can reduce weight by around 15-25kg. And learning to stay off sugars is a good habit that should start from childhood itself,” he adds. According to Dr. Menon, regular workout is an essential aspect of battling obesity. “Previously it was thought that just walking or running is good enough. But actually you need a combination —not just the aerobic exercises, but also some strengthening and stretching exercises,” he says.
Stress, smoking and alcohol are potential risk factors for the development of cardiac conditions. “If somebody has diabetes or blood pressure, and is also smoking, he is three times more at risk compared to a person who only has high blood pressure or is just diabetic,” says Dr. Chandra. His recommendations for stress management include practising yoga and meditation and taking time out for relaxation and family interactions. He also suggests picking up a hobby for stress management, and avoiding long sessions of TV and video games.
Patient-centric care in the realm of cardiology
This session focusses on a collaborative approach where healthcare providers engage patients in shared decision-making, taking into account their values and goals. This goes beyond just treating cardiovascular conditions, and addresses each patient’s unique needs. The distinguished panel of for this discussion included Dr. Rishi Sethi, Professor, Dept of Cardiology, King George’s Medical University, Dr. Prashant Jagtap, Senior Interventional cardiologist, Director of Viveka Hospitals and Dr Santosh Kumar Dora, Senior Cardiologist & Cardiac Electrophysiologist, Asian Heart Institute.
Sharing his thoughts on the subject, Dr. Sethi said, “Doctors are now realising that until we put the patient’s needs into consideration—beyond a narrow focus on his particular disease — the outcomes that we want to achieve for our patients may not be very fruitful.”
The essence of patient-centric approach is factoring in the age, gender, the psychological and social profile of a patient as well as their educational qualification and economic status while tailoring a treatment plan. Shedding light on the topic, Dr. Jagtap shares, “When you treat a disease, you win or you lose, but when you treat a person, I guarantee, irrespective of outcome, you win. That is the essence of patient-centred care.”
Patient awareness about the risks of the treatment is crucial in the arena of cardiac care. Lack of information has often proved to be a friction point between patients and hospitals. “All cardiologists agree that even with the best possible care, there is 2-10% risk of mortality,” says Dr. Sethi, adding, “You have to inform patients that what doctors are offering is an 8% advantage versus not undergoing a procedure like angioplasty.”
Sharing a similar thought, Dr Jagtap observes that doing an angioplasty is only half the process done. “Ensuring that the patient takes medications diligently and comes for follow up accounts for the remaining 50%. About 10-20% of patients stop the medications after one or two years, unless you have properly explained things to them.” These measures not only empower patients but also enhance the overall quality of care.
Heart care: Future direction and emerging technologies
The future of heart care is poised for remarkable advancements driven by revolutionising technologies such as telemedicine, AI, machine learning, wearable devices, sophisticated sensors and more. In this session, stalwarts from the field of cardiology share their thoughts on how fusion of technologies promises a future where heart care is not only more effective but also more personalized, accessible, and preventative. The panels were Dr. Arun Gopi, Director, Cath Lab & Senior Consultant Interventional Cardiologist & Electrophysiologist, Metromed Hospital, Dr. Jagdish S Hiremath, President of the Cardiology Society of India, and Dr. Balbir Singh, Chairman, Cardiac Sciences, Max Super Speciality Hospital.
Dr Gopi has been at the forefront of adopting emerging technologies in electrophysiology. He shared how the conventional pacemaker has now lost prominence. “In a leadless pacemaker the whole pacemaker circuitry has been minimised to the size of a vitamin capsule. So it just requires a single day procedure of one puncture, through which we can implant the pacemaker — no scar, no bump on the anterior chest wall and the patient goes home the next day. And most of these devices can also be monitored via satellite via remote monitoring,” he says.
On the other hand, Dr. Hiremath shed light on implantable sensors and the role they play in heart care. Explaining the need for home monitoring devices for tracking syncope, he recalls, “In the past, if a patient fainted at home, he would often come to us hours — or even days — later when it would be impossible to figure out what had gone wrong.”
At the initial stage, these devices were cumbersome and only yielded data for 24 hours, which was too inadequate to make any conclusive decision. “Now we implant sensors in such patients. And they can stay inside the skin for as long as 1-2 years and keep recording the ECGs. All the monitoring takes place in the iCloud. So, with this wider data procuring, there is a good chance that we will pick up on abnormalities,” adds Dr Hiremath.
The views/suggestions/opinions expressed in the article are individual opinions of doctors for public awareness and information purposes only. This article and the views expressed herein is not to be treated as a medical advice. Please consult your doctor for any health related advice.