02/01/2010
Little Company of Mary Honors Heart Awareness Month
February marks National Heart Health Awareness Month bringing awareness to the leading cause of death for women in the United States. Since 1984, the number of cardiovascular disease deaths for women has exceeded those for men, yet half of all men who die of heart attacks had no warning signs.
“It’s never too late – or too early to think about heart health,” says Thomas J. Quinn, M.D., of the Department of Cardiology at Little Company of Mary Hospital. “But heart disease actually is more common in women than men once they reach age 50.” Dr. Quinn offers health tips for both men and women to lead their heart to a healthy start.
1. Maintain a Healthy Weight. Conduct regular physical activity and adopt a low-fat diet with less than 30% of calories from fat and consume five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Physical inactivity is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Healthy adults should be getting at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity five days of the week, however, consult your physician before starting new regimen.
2. Get screened. Your risk for heart disease can be much higher than you think. Learn about low cost screenings available in your townships or area hospitals. Little Company of Mary’s Health Education Center offers two low-cost risk cardiac screenings “Wake-Up Call" and “Healthy Heart” that provides valuable information to you and your physician. Contact our Health Education Center to learn more about each screening or register on-line.
3. Talk to your physician. Using the risk information from screenings, you and your physician should talk about your risks and any relative lifestyle or medical treatments that you may need to incorporate.
Today, many people are already living with heart disease. Many have symptoms and do not recognize them. “Immediate treatment of a heart attack is crucial to lessen the amount of damage to your heart,” explains Medical Director of Little Company of Mary’s Cardiac Catheterization Lab, Daniel A. Rowan, D.O., Seeking treatment immediately is vital.”
At Little Company of Mary Hospital, the cardiac catheterization lab team has an excellent history in successfully performing emergency angioplasties within 90 minutes of the patient’s arrival in the emergency room. For nearly two years, Little Company of Mary has exceeded the 75 percent national benchmark instituted in performing these potentially life-saving procedures within the 90-minute timeframe.
Little Company of Mary is able to perform emergent and elective angioplasties for patients who suffer from blocked arteries as part of a registry program that started with Johns Hopkins' Atlantic Cardiovascular Patient Outcomes Research Team (C-PORT) in 2000. Little Company of Mary became the first Illinois hospital to participate in this registry and have successfully performed numerous angioplasties in emergencies where time is critical. This past September, the Hospital announced a new partnership with the American College of Cardiology Foundation’s National Cardiovascular Data Registry (NCDR)- a quality improvement program that will help improve hospital processes to further enhance this goal. Today, the NCDR is the most comprehensive, outcomes-based quality improvement program in the United States.
LCM’s board certified cardiologists stress that the best tool for a healthy heart is prevention. Little Company of Mary offers Free Health Workshops, including the upcoming, “How Stress Affects your blood pressure,” to help educate you on the different types of risk factors you may be encountering.
With a state-of-the-art cardiology department, minimally invasive treatments, and board certified cardiologists, your heart receives the specialized attention it deserves. To learn more about the screenings and workshops call the Health Education Center at 708.423.5774 .
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