A Note from Brady

Show Your Heart Love

The heart doesn’t produce emotions, but we still associate it with love and compassion. I think it makes sense. Love for our family, friends, community, and work enriches our lives. A healthy heart enriches our bodies with oxygen and nutrients, allowing us to perform acts of love and kindness. And keeping our hearts healthy takes work, and Boone Health is here to help. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States. According to the CDC, 1 in 20 adults has coronary artery disease, a condition where plaques narrow the arteries and restrict blood flow to the heart. Every 40 seconds, someone in America has a heart attack, and 1 in every 5 heart attacks is what is known as a “silent” heart attack. Silent heart attacks don’t have typical symptoms like chest pain but can still cause damage to the heart if not treated promptly. These statistics are concerning, but fortunately, we can proactively prevent and manage heart disease with self-knowledge and early intervention. What we know about heart disease continues to evolve with further research. For example, women and men can experience different heart attack symptoms, and women are more likely to have silent heart attacks. African Americans are at a higher risk for heart disease and stroke.

Missouri Heart Center Cardiologist Martin Tibuakuu, MD does medical outreach in Columbia to educate our community on how to prevent and get screened for heart disease. He said, “I’m reaching out to minority and disproportionately affected groups like African Americans to make sure they get screened for cardiovascular risk factors, hypertension, high blood pressure, and diabetes, and then receive care before they suffer from a heart attack or stroke.”

Your annual checkup presents the opportunity to discuss your heart health with your primary care provider. Knowing your cholesterol levels, blood pressure, family history, and other risk factors like diabetes, obesity, and smoking can help you and your physician develop a plan to keep your heart in good working order. I make sure to schedule my annual checkup every year around my birthday. It’s one more thing I do to celebrate another year of life.

In this issue of My Boone Health, an active, young African American man shares his story about how a preventative visit revealed he had atrial fibrillation. After receiving treatment from Dr. Tibuakuu, he said, “If I could get a message to anyone, especially men, it’s to….go to the doctor regularly.”

A cardiac calcium scoring screen also can be a valuable tool for people with risk factors but no symptoms of coronary artery disease. This non-invasive CT scan looks for calcium deposits in the coronary arteries. A coronary calcium score ranges from 0 to over 400, and a score of 100 or more indicates a higher risk for a heart attack or stroke. Because my parents had heart disease, I scheduled a calcium scoring exam two years ago and received a score of 0. I’ve planned a five-year follow-up screening to continue monitoring. We offer those screenings here at Boone Health at a lower cost than you’re likely to find anywhere else. To schedule yours, call us at 573-815-8150.

When we care for our hearts, we show ourselves love, and we show our loved ones that we appreciate their concern. If you’re already taking good care of your heart, then share the love by encouraging the people you care about to see their doctor, get a coronary calcium CT scan, and follow a heart-healthy lifestyle.