Hanoi (VNA) – The northern region is experiencing a severe cold spell, prꦆompting people to brace themselves for the extreme weather conditions by strengthening their immunity and resistance to common winter diseases, especially heart diseases, hypertension and stroke.

The prolonged cold weather is a good time for diseases to attack people, especially during days with high temperature fluctuations (10-15 degrees Celsius).

Increasing number of patients with heart diseases amid cold weather

In recent days, the common temperature in the morning has been recorded at 11-14 degrees Celsius in northern localities, and even under 9 degrees Celsius in mountainous areas. As a result, many people have been hospitalised due to health problems. N.T.H, a 65-year-old woman from Ba Dinh district of Hanoi, was brought to the hospital after suffering severe and prolonged chest pains that made her fainted. After admission, the patient was taken to the cardiac catheterisation room for stenting to revascularise the blocked coronary artery. She has gradually recovered.

According to the Hanoi Heart Hospital, each day, the hospital receives about 2,000 patients for examination, of whom about 50 are hospitalised.

Particularly in cold days, the number of patients tend to surge. On January 30 alone, the hospital’s emergency unit received 39 patients, over 50% of whom were over 60 years old who suffered from myocardial infarction, hyperte🦂nsion, and coronary artery diseases.

Doctor Vu Quynh Nga, Vice Director of the Hanoi Heart Hospital, said that in winter when the temperature drops sharply, people may suffer from peripheral vasoconstriction, causing an increase in blood pressure. The risk will be higher when temperature change is more sudden and the temperature fluctuation is high, she said.

Measures for heart care

Nga said that in cold weather, human body’s circulatory system has to work harder to keep the body warmer, which means the heart has to beat faster and the blood vessels constrict, leading to faster heart beats and increased blood pressure. Thickened blood can create an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases such as stroke and heart attack. Therefore, patients at risk of cardiovascular disease need to pay greater attention to taking care of their health, she advised. The expert suggested that people should stay in a close environment with temperature not less than 18 degrees Celsius. Along with keeping their body warm, people should maintain active with indoor physical exercise, she added. In terms of nutrition, Nga recommended that people should eat warm food and drink warm water. Particularly, people with heart diseases must ensure that they take medicine regularly and proper nutrition, while wearing scarfs and face masks when going outside. She stressed the need to keep warm for children in cold days. She also suggested that the elderly should not go outside in early morning and take indoor exercise. Nga noted that in winter, especially during cold days, the rate of patients coming to the emergency units due to stroke, angina pectoris and heart attack tends to increase. Therefore, patients who are at a high risk and the elderly should go to the doctor regularly to receive examination and receive medical prescriptions, while applying measures to keep the body warm and avoid possible incidents, she added./.