More millennials, young doctors dying from cardiac arrests amid stress, unhealthy habits

Hyderabad: In recent years, several cases of sudden cardiac deaths among relatively younger people, especially in the 20s to 40s age bracket, have made headlines, which included celebrities too.

On February 16, two young doctors from Telangana, a 35-year-old radiologist from Kalwakurthy and a 36-year-old anesthesiologist from Kurnool, succumbed to sudden cardiac arrest. While the doctors had no prior history of Covid-19, they were non-smokers and were physically fit (one among them was an avid cyclist), it is surmised among the medical fraternity that financial and work stress could be a risk factor causing deaths of young doctors.

Post-Covid studies on sudden cardiac arrests

Earlier, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) had also done studies on sudden cardiac deaths among younger people with Covid-19 and attributed the risk factors to post Covid-19 hospitalisation, family history of sudden death deaths, binge drinking 48 hours before death, use of recreational drug/substance abuse, and performing high-intensity physical activity 48 hours before death.

Data from Italy suggested a significant positive association between the spread of Covid-19 and an increased number of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA). There is a 58 per cent rise in OHCA as compared to the previous years.

However, given the alarming incidents of cardiac deaths post Covid, Dr P Sitaram attributed the cause to Coronavirus or vaccine or both “The ghost of the virus is still there,” he said.

This week, doctors from various groups of the Indian Medical Association (IMA Telangana), government doctors’ associations from India and Telangana and the Association of Physicians of India (API) analysed the probable causes of sudden, unexplained cardiac deaths among younger people, with special reference to deaths of young doctors.

Stress, the silent killer

Dr Kiran Madhala, convener of the scientific committee, IMA Telangana, pointed out that stress is the biggest contributing factor and needs to be addressed with as much seriousness as alcohol binging and smoking.

“There has been an AIIMS study on younger people about the effect of stress over some time. It was revealed that the telomerase activity of the genes is affected due to prolonged stress. It means the chromosomal endings/shortening happen early due to stress, instead of the usual 70-plus years, thereby damaging the vital organs in youth or middle age and the body feels much older than one’s biological age,” said Dr Kiran.

Improper food habits and binge drinking

Dr Amarappa Nagalikar pointed out that the food habits of the public have changed drastically including the timing of food intake, increased use of refined/ready-to-eat food items and decreased physical activities.

“There has been a considerable increase in consumption of sugar, maida, salt, baked and junk foods rather than homemade foods. Such faulty food habits may contribute to sudden cardiovascular deaths among adults,” he said while Dr Vijay Chauhan averred that binge drinking and usage of recreational substances were the main causes.

No work-life balance

Dr Ch Santhosh analysed the causes from the psychological perspective of doctors.

According to him, the new generation of budding doctors comes with lots of hopes and expectations for their clinical practices. But the scenarios in theory and practice are different. It takes around 10-12 years to establish oneself as a full-fledged doctor after completing post-graduation and super-speciality.

Some doctors have the burden of educational loans while they are still struggling to get a foothold over private practice and also incur establishment costs for new set-ups like clinics or diagnostic centres.

“Young doctors want to be renowned in a short time and in the process, they sacrifice their time, health, family and love and take a lot of stress, work without proper rest, even neglecting health and family, which takes a toll on them early in life,” observed Dr Santhosh. Dr Rupesh Kumar Reddy attributed the sudden deaths of young doctors to work pressure or job stress and professional delays in establishing oneself.

‘Heal the Healer’ initiative

Doctors also suggested initiating a programme, as suggested by the public health committee, called ‘Heal the Healer’ for the medical fraternity.

This programme would include a comprehensive health check-up for every doctor, creating a database to analyse the causes of morbidity and mortality among doctors to take selective interventions to reduce the burden.

“We can involve all corporate hospitals and diagnostic centres for the purpose. This health drive can be undertaken on a campaign basis every year on a particularly lean month,” said Dr Ranga Reddy while Dr Venkataratnam said, “Free master health checkups for doctors through IMA is needed to find the high-risk people.”

Focus on regular physical exercise in moderation

Dr Mahananda Chaudary stated that regular exercise in moderation is mandatory for a healthy mind, body and soul. Everyone needs to spend at least one or two hours of ‘me time’ daily for fitness activities, introspection and relaxation, the doctor said.