More than 5 million Americans have poor heart health, chronic heart failure, a long-term condition in which the heart no longer pumps blood efficiently to the body's other organs. Heart health problems and deaths from the disease remain high despite widespread use of effective drug and device therapies to treat the condition.
Some study or project is underway to redo how serious heart attacks are handled. Paramedics, doctors and 65 hospitals put aside powerful individual interests like money and control, and focused on giving faster care. Why is this important? Drugs, devices and doctors do no good if they do not reach people quickly, before the heart suffers permanent damage. Heart attacks happen when arteries are blocked, crimping a critical blood supply.
The first choice of this type of clot for heart health treatment is angioplasty, in which a tiny balloon is pushed into the vessel and inflated to flatten the clog for better heart health.