If you have diseased coronary arteriesyour health and safety may depend on you avoiding heavily polluted areas. A new study suggests tiny particles in polluted air can cause a short circuit in your hearts electrical wiring!
A recent study monitored 48 Boston-area patients hospitalized for either a heart attack, angina or worsening symptoms of coronary artery disease.
Researchers monitored the patients electrocardiograms for a change called an ST-segment depression. This electrical signal could be a warning sign of either: 1) insufficient blood flow to the heart or, 2) an inflamed heart muscle.
According to an American Heart Association (AHA) statement, patients were breathing air considered healthy according to accepted or proposed pollutant thresholds of the National Air Quality Standard.
The research team found the greatest changes occurred within the first month after hospitalization. Patients recovering from a heart attack had greater changes in ST-segment depression compared to other participants.
The findings suggest that air pollution can either inflame the heart muscle or reduce blood flow to the heart. For these reasons, the AHA and the American College of Cardiology recommend that patients who have suffered a heart attack delay driving for two to three weeks after leaving the hospital.
Our study provides additional rationale to avoid or reduce heavy traffic exposure after discharge, even for those without a heart attack, since traffic exposure involves pollution exposure as well as stress, said Diane R. Gold, M.D., M.P.H., the studys senior author and an associate professor of medicine and environmental health at Harvard University in Boston.
The research team said further research should focus on how breathing polluted air causes the ST-segment depression to occur.