Preventing Heart Disease
Heart attack patients may continue to benefit from health advice for relatively long periods of time following a cardiac event, it has been revealed.
The latest issue of Archives of Internal Medicine notes a study conducted by the Associazione Nazionale Medici Cardiologi Ospedalieri Research Centre in Florence, Italy.
Scientists at the facility provided 1,620 patients with long-term health advice following a heart attack, while a similar number received the standard level of aftercare.
Across a number of criteria - including specific combinations of subsequent cardiac events - the group which received a greater level of health advice was found to be less at risk.
The intervention group also exhibited signs of an increase in healthy living, such as reduced stress, raised exercise levels and improved diet, along with an improvement in the prescription of drugs to control their symptoms.
Guidance was given to individuals in the group monthly for the first half-year following their initial heart attacks, with biannual consultations for the next three years.
While the long-term care of patients may be important, research conducted by the Mayo Clinic recently found that immediate aftercare can also play a role in reducing the risk of another attack.
Among those who survive a heart attack, the greatest likelihood of a subsequent event occurs within the first month after leaving hospital, the medical research facility found.
