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Michael’s story

Latest developments in heart attack treatment – saving lives, speeding recovery and preventing future heart attacks.

Michael McSweeney was at work in Canary Wharf when he had a heart attack. Instead of going to A&E for thrombolysis – standard clot-busting treatment – for his blocked artery, he was taken to The London Chest for a primary (emergency) angioplasty.

Angioplasties are usually performed as part of the planned care of a patient with a heart condition, but, as its name suggests, an emergency angioplasty is carried out immediately after the heart attack.

Highly trained ambulance crews use heart-monitoring equipment – electrocardiograms (ECGs) – to identify patients who are having a heart attack because of a blocked artery. These patients are brought straight to The London Chest Hospital where they are assessed by a team of clinicians. If an emergency angioplasty is appropriate they are usually ready to begin within 16 minutes, and the procedure is typically completed within 40 minutes.

There is growing evidence to show that an emergency angioplasty can reduce and, in some cases, even prevent damage to the heart. It can also significantly reduce the risk of having a heart attack again. And patients recover more quickly – most are discharged within two or three days, compared to five to eight days following conventional treatment.