What happens when you have a heart attack?

Consultant cardiologist at University Hospital Waterford (UHW) John O’Dea, explains what happens when you have a heart attack and how long you have to seek medical help.

“The thing that catches the public imagination is: ‘If I have a heart attack, what happens?’ The gold standard of care is a thing called a primary angioplasty.

“A primary angioplasty means coming to the cath lab (where heart examination and procedures are carried out) in a very urgent manner, having an urgent angiogram and having the blockage that’s causing our heart attack opened and potentially having a stent placed to maintain a patent artery [technique to see level of openness].