say your father has heart attack/arrest - would you not like to have Thrombolytics such as TpA or Retavase..etc... on hand to use rather then just aspirine ?
2007-11-29 07:22:00 · 7 answers · asked by Sdcd C 1 in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ First Aid
No. You dont have the necessary equipment to diagnose whether thrombolyasis is indicated at home, you are unlikely to have the training to administer it. There are many contra indications for this procedure.
If a heart attack is suspected, give an asprin (300mg) and call 999. Many ambulance services in england, and all of scotland now thrombolyse in the pre hospital setting, Ive done it myself quite a a number of times now.
The ambulance will be with you quickly, have the skills and experience to do this safely, and in the worst case of something going wrong will be the best people to deal with the result!
2007-11-29 14:11:20 · answer #1 · answered by Telf 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
NO!!! ABSULUTELY NOT! Although these drugs save many lives, they are also dangerous. A certain percentage of people who get these drugs will have a significant stroke, and even doctors can't figure out for sure who this will happen to. Thrombolytics are also only indicated for certain types of heart attacks known as "ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction". This refers to findings on a EKG. They are not generally used in a patient without these findings on an EKG, or without significant elevations in cardiac enzymes.
There are tons of patients who come to the emergency department with chest pain and are not having a heart attack. If he had chest pain from a different cause such as an aneurysm or pericarditis, thrombolytics would have a pretty good chance of killing him.
The best treatment for a heart attack, even they type that they give thrombolytics to is not thrombolytics. The best treatment is to get a heart catheterization. Thrombolytics are only used if the hospital is not able to get the patient into the catheterization lab in less than 90 minutes.
2007-11-29 15:34:22 · answer #2 · answered by twood1218 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Absolutely NOT! TpA, Retavase, other thrombolytic while they can be life saving, they can also kill a person. First off with out a 12-lead EKG there is no way to definitively tell if someone is having a heart attack at home. And even a 12-lead EKG can not detect many heart-attacks. If the person has any kind of bleeding problem, recent trauma, stroke, or other problems it is very possible they would bleed to death and die if they received the drug. In fact most people who have a heart attack, do not get thrombotic, they go to the cardiac cauterization lab to get the clot fixed.
2007-11-29 15:51:06 · answer #3 · answered by "McRib" NREMT-P 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
One big fat NO!
If he has suffered a cardiac arrest then they require immediate life support and possibly defibrillation - thrombolytics take time to give and about 45 minutes to work. If they have stopped breathing then you only have a very few minutes before they are brain dead! A person can suffer a cardiac arrest for many different reasons and treatment revolves around what kind of electrical state their heart is in.
In London, we take heart attacks that can be diagnosed via and ECG (EKG in USA), direct to the cardiac catheterisation labs in specific circumstances. Likewise thrombolytics can only be given in specific circumstances, bith due to ide effects such as potential stroke, and does not exclude death!
Personally if my dad was suffering a heart attack, I would want him to call for an ambulance immediately and be taken direct to the most appropriate hospital - preferably the catheter lab if he meets the criteria!
Playing god with inadequate information, training and experience is usually fatal!!
Would you really want to potentially kill your day with a 'just in case'?
Leave it to the professionals (aka ambulance service and A & E (ER) departments).
2007-12-01 17:08:47 · answer #4 · answered by Kanst 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no thrombolytics can be very very dangerous. hospitals only use it when they are absolutly certain that it is a clot causing the stroke or heart attack. there are other things that can cause a stroke, and the use of thrombolytics can be deadly. one type of stroke a hemorrhagic stroke, meaning a blood vessel burst. it manifests the same symptoms that a person with a blocked artery in the brain would. if the person with the busted vessel were to be given thrombolytics, it was cause increased bleeding leading to increased pressure in the brain, causing death. a person in a non-hospital setting has no way of determining the actual cause of the stroke or heart attack and in this case would be causing more harm than good.
2007-11-29 15:29:23 · answer #5 · answered by strawberryshortcaketex 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
no, the general population doesn't have the knowledge or necessary skills to safely administer those drugs. And aspirin is a pretty powerful thrombolytic in it's own right. Stick with aspirin and leave the rest to professionals.
2007-11-29 15:26:56 · answer #6 · answered by essentiallysolo 7 · 6⤊ 0⤋
No not a good idea.
If an heart attack (M.I) is suspected 300mg of Aspirin is the best thing you can do.... and call 999 (or 911/ 112) for an emergency ambulance!
2007-11-29 16:11:48 · answer #7 · answered by confused 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋