The Hindu Business Line : Heart attacks in Hollywood

Those of us who love commercial cinema know the starring role played by heart attacks in the general plot… right from providing the turning point to ending it all, heart attacks have long been a scriptwriter’s dream tool.

And now, a survey from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) has found that four out of 10 people get information about heart attacks from Hollywood movies or TV dramas. As Lucy Atkins writes in the Guardian, “This would be a wonderful public education tool — if the fictionalised versions were accurate.”

Reel life falls far short of the real facts, the BHF has found. “The ‘Hollywood heart attack’ is dangerously misleading and because of it, many of us ignore the real symptoms until it is too late.”

Think movies and you instantly recall the dramatic chest clutching and collapse. The true symptoms however vary and are not so easily identifiable.

The common sensations listed include: a central chest pain that can spread to the arms, neck and jaw; feeling sweaty, light-headed, sick or short of breath; or even a dull ache, mild discomfort or a heavy sensation in the chest that makes you feel ill. Sometimes it could be a chest pain that spreads to the back or stomach. It can even feel like bad indigestion. “Because it is not what they think a heart attack is like, people decide to sleep on it, or wait a bit,” says David Barker of the BHF. “But you should always call 999.”

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