Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, people have been understandably hesitant to be in public places, including doctors’ offices. Results of a study done by the CDC in late 2020 showed that 41% of adults were avoiding or postponing their regular medical appointments and annual screenings because they feared they might contract COVID-19. That hesitancy has resulted in delayed or forsaken care of all types, with delays in cardiac care among the most consequential.
Consider the circumstances of Chief Petty Officer Ramon Rinkin, 41, a yeoman in the Navy with a family history of heart disease. When Rinkin, a husband and father of three, began experiencing symptoms of indigestion and heartburn during the pandemic, he brushed them aside.
However, as he was getting ready for work one day, he went into cardiac arrest and collapsed in the bathroom. His wife, Melania, began CPR and called 911. Rinkin went into cardiopulmonary arrest at home and again in the ambulance before arriving at Saint Francis Hospital in Bartlett, Tennessee. He then went into cardiogenic shock and coded once more before interventional cardiologist Raj Dave, M.D., inserted an Impella heart pump. Two weeks later, he walked out of the hospital with his healthy, native heart.
Read the full article: Listen to Your Body and Heart. Avoiding Doctor Visits Won’t Stop Potential Disease.
