Are chest pain centers helpful in diagnosing heart attacks?
A. Chest pain centers in the emergency department have generally been accepted as a safe, cost effective, and rapid approach to the evaluation, triage, and management of patients with potential acute coronary syndromes. These centers were initially designed to enhance patient care by decreasing time to treatment for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and rapidly identifying patients with unstable angina. Q. Can heart disease be prevented? A. Stop smoking, and if you don’t smoke, don’t start. People can also lose excess weight, exercise regularly, eat a low cholesterol diet, and take medications to reduce cholesterol if prescribed. It’s also important to maintain a healthy blood pressure, control diabetes, and avoid excessive alcohol consumption. Talk to your physician about taking aspirin if you have major risk factors for heart disease. Get regular checkups, and if you have a family history of heart disease, it’s especially important that you maintain a healthy lifestyle. To help your
