Coronavirus Fears May Be Causing Heart And Stroke Patients To Avoid Hospitals

Emergency physicians have noticed a decline in the number of stroke and heart patients going to the emergency room or the hospital for treatment. Some patients have openly said that they have become afraid of going to hospitals because of coronavirus.

COVID-19 Fears

Preliminary research suggests that COVID-19 fears are making patients with serious emergencies such as stroke or heart attack to stay home when they would have typically rushed to the hospital. Without immediate treatment, patients could suffer permanent damage or can die.

One example is that of a resident in Queens, New York, Mr. Bishnu Virachan. Researchers say that in early April, as Virachan was watching television, he suddenly experienced chest pains but chose not to go to the hospital’s emergency room. In an interview with Mr. Virachan, researchers learned that the 43-year-old man is more afraid of the hospitals because of the coronavirus infection.

After a couple of days, the pain he felt prevailed over his fear. Virachan found himself going to the Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, where doctors found his left main coronary almost completely blocked. A surgeon operated on the artery, and saved his life, though with a weakened heart. According to doctors, Virachan would have died if he waited much longer.

Empty Heart And Stroke Units

Doctors in urban medical centers are saying that emergency rooms are only at half-capacity on regular days, with heart and stroke units almost empty. Some reports say there are even medical professionals who fear untreated emergencies are killing more people than the coronavirus.

According to a research paper by a cardiologist at nine big medical centers, it is estimated that there is a 38% reduction of such patients going to hospitals since March 1. The recent study said many of these patients suffer from serious heart attacks, with most of them requiring artery operations.

Missing Patients

The 24-bed coronary care unit at the Cleveland Clinic is often full on most normal days. Today, only seven patients came in, prompting a cardiologist there, Dr. Steven Nissen, to ask where the patients are. On seeing the almost empty coronary care unit, he said, “That can’t be normal.”

One of the patients present at the Cleveland Clinic was a man who felt chest pain while doing push-ups, Dr. Nissen said. The patient confessed he had also been afraid of going to the hospitals because of the presence of coronavirus patients there. He opted to stay home for the week, becoming frailer in the process and constantly out of breath even with the slightest effort. His legs were also swelling.

On April 16, he finally went to the Cleveland Clinic, where doctors found an easy-to-treat heart attack progressing to a life-threatening emergency. After a risky operation, he spent almost a week in the facility’s intensive care, which included a few days on a ventilator. Dr. Nissen considers the patient lucky as he could have suffered a more serious, or even fatal, emergency had he not dragged himself to the hospital.