A heart attack – also called acute myocardial infarction (AMI) – means that part of the heart muscle may be damaged. The damage occurs when a blood clot blocks blood flow to the heart, depriving it of oxygen.
When blood flow to the heart is slowed or stopped for 15 minutes or more, part of the heart muscle dies. That is why it is important to restore blood flow to the heart as soon as possible after a heart attack.
What to expect as a hospital patient
At Allina hospitals, our doctors and nurses know proven ways to treat a heart attack and help prevent another one from happening.
As soon as you arrive, you may receive aspirin and beta blocker medicine.
- Aspirin helps thin the blood, preventing blood clots from forming. You will not receive aspirin if you're allergic to it or have another condition that makes aspirin use inappropriate.
- Beta blockers can reduce the workload on your heart by stopping the effects of stress hormones.
Within 30 minutes of your arrival, you may have thrombolytic therapy if doctors suspect a blood clot is causing the heart attack.
- When thrombolytic medicine is given, it binds to the blood clot and begins to dissolve it right away. Once the clot is dissolved, blood usually can flow through the artery to supply the affected area of the heart with oxygen.
Within 90 minutes of your arrival, you may need to go to a cardiac catheterization lab to see if clogged blood vessels caused your heart attack.
If you have clogged vessels, you may have an angioplasty. Also called percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), angioplasty improves blood flow by stretching a blood vessel or artery from the inside. Sometimes, a stent is placed in the artery to help keep it open.
During your hospital stay, you will receive smoking cessation advice and counseling if you smoke tobacco. Quitting smoking will help your heart heal and can prevent future heart attacks.
When you leave the hospital, you should have orders to take one or both of these medicines.
- Aspirin thins the blood. This helps keep blood clots from forming, preventing future heart attacks. You doctor may not prescribe aspirin if you are taking Coumadin® (warfarin) or another blood thinning medicine.
- Beta blockers help improve your heart's function.
If your heart attack caused left ventricular dysfunction, you will receive one of these types of medicine.
- Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors relax blood vessels and make it easier for your heart to pump blood.
- Angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are given if you cannot handle ACE inhibitors. ARBs also relax the blood vessels and allow your heart to pump easier.
Left ventricular dysfunction occurs when the main pumping chamber of your heart – the left ventricle – stiffens and enlarges. This makes it difficult for your heart to pump blood to the rest of your body. It also can cause blood to back up into your lungs, making it hard to breathe at times.
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How is Allina doing?
| Percent of heart attack patients who received all appropriate interventions |
| Allina - all hospitals
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Abbott Northwestern Hospital
Mercy Hospital
United Hospital
Our community hospitals often send heart attack patients who need angioplasty or heart surgery to our metro area hospitals. This is one reason why the data from these hospitals includes less than 25 cases, a number that is too small to reliably predict performance.
Buffalo Hospital
Cambridge Medical Center
New Ulm Medical Center
Owatonna Hospital
River Falls Area Hospital
St. Francis Regional Medical Center
Unity Hospital |
Minnesota Hospital Quality Comparison
As part of the Minnesota Hospital Quality Partnership, we report on how well our hospitals are doing in heart attack care. That information appears on the Minnesota Hospital Quality Comparison Web site.
Visit www.mnhospitalquality.org to see how we compare to other Minnesota hospitals in providing optimal care to our patients who have had heart attacks.
Heart Attack Information and Care
Coronary artery disease and heart attacks
Heart health risk assessment
Cardiovascular disease specialists
Hospital Stay Information
Patient privacy and rights
SPEAK UP for your health care
How to prevent infections during your hospital stay
Planning for your hospital discharge
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