Does giving an IV in the left hand increase the risk of sudden death? These ten behaviors actually increase the risk of sudden death! Come and have a look →

gossip

Recently, an old man in the author's community group posted a screenshot (see the picture below), which roughly means that infusion and blood transfusion in the left hand will increase the risk of sudden death, but not in the right hand. The picture describes that "the cold liquid enters from the left arm, once it causes myocardial spasm, if it is in an expanded state, electric shock may make the heart beat again; if it is in a closed state, the person's life is in danger" and "it is safer to do it on the right arm. The human qi and the yang energy of heaven and earth rotate from left to right. Once the liquid is cold, it will be relieved when it circulates to the left heart area."

So, does the view in the picture that "intravenous and blood transfusions in the left hand will increase the risk of sudden death" have any scientific basis?

Today, I will talk to you about human blood circulation and the top ten behaviors that actually increase the risk of sudden death!

analyze

The human circulatory system consists of the heart, arteries, veins, capillaries and blood . Their mission is to transport oxygen, carbon dioxide, nutrients, waste, etc. to maintain the life activities of the human body. You can imagine the circulatory system as a highway that surrounds the whole body. The heart is the engine, the arteries and veins are the lanes on the highway, the capillaries are the paths connecting various cities and villages, and the blood is the vehicle that transports the goods.

The heart has four chambers, called the left atrium, right atrium, left ventricle, and right ventricle . The left atrium and left ventricle contain red blood rich in oxygen, while the right atrium and right ventricle contain dark red blood lacking oxygen. There is a wall between the left and right sides called the septum, which prevents the two types of blood from mixing.

The human body has two circulations: systemic circulation and pulmonary circulation. Systemic circulation is the process of starting from the left ventricle, passing through the aorta, arteries, capillaries, veins, superior and inferior vena cava, and returning to the right atrium. Pulmonary circulation is the process of starting from the right ventricle, passing through the pulmonary artery, pulmonary capillaries, and pulmonary veins and returning to the left atrium.

Schematic diagram of blood circulation (Systemic Anatomy (8th Edition))

According to the above-mentioned circulatory anatomical structure and working mechanism of the human body, whether the infusion is done in the left or right hand, the liquid first enters the vein → systemic circulation → right atrium and right ventricle → pulmonary circulation → left atrium and left ventricle → artery. Because the heart is on the left side, the liquid infused in the left hand does not directly enter the heart, and there is no saying that "human qi and the yang qi of heaven and earth rotate from left to right" when infusing in the right hand. Therefore, the saying that infusion and blood transfusion in the left hand increase the risk of sudden death is simply untenable.

However, it is true that tens of thousands of people lose their precious lives every year due to sudden cardiac death. They may suddenly fall down while working, exercising, sleeping, eating, or even laughing and talking, and never get up again.

Sudden cardiac death refers to sudden death due to cardiac causes, usually due to arrhythmia or myocardial ischemia. Sudden cardiac death often occurs without obvious warnings and signs, making it difficult to prevent and treat. However, this does not mean that we are powerless and can just let it happen.

In fact, the occurrence of sudden cardiac death has a lot to do with our lifestyle and habits. If we can live a healthy life and pay attention to avoiding some risk factors, we can greatly reduce the risk of sudden cardiac death.

So, what behaviors actually increase the risk of sudden death? Let's find out today.

1

Long-term smoking

Long-term smoking can increase the incidence of coronary heart disease, which is one of the main causes of sudden cardiac death. Smoking can also cause increased blood pressure, increased blood viscosity, and arteriosclerosis, all of which can burden and damage the heart.

2

Obesity

Excessive obesity can increase the incidence of metabolic syndromes such as high blood pressure, high blood lipids, and high blood sugar, which in turn can increase the incidence of coronary heart disease and arrhythmia. Excessive obesity can also cause breathing difficulties, sleep apnea, etc., affecting cardiopulmonary function.

3

No exercise

Lack of exercise can lead to decreased physical function, myocardial atrophy, reduced vascular elasticity, blood circulation disorders, etc., which can increase the heart load and damage. Proper exercise can improve cardiopulmonary function, lower blood pressure and blood lipids, and prevent coronary heart disease and arrhythmia.

4

Excessive exercise

Appropriate exercise is good for heart health, but excessive exercise can also cause damage to the heart. Excessive exercise can lead to myocardial hypoxia, metabolic disorders, electrolyte disorders, etc., and cause malignant arrhythmias. Excessive exercise can also cause chest injuries or heart shock, resulting in abnormal conduction of cardiac electrical signals.

5

Excessive drinking

Excessive drinking can have a toxic effect on the heart, leading to high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, dilated cardiomyopathy, etc. Drinking can also induce atrial fibrillation or other types of arrhythmias.

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6

Abnormal emotional excitement

When people are emotionally excited, their sympathetic nerves become excited and secrete a large amount of hormones such as catecholamines, which increase heart rate, blood pressure, and coronary artery contraction, causing acute myocardial ischemia or malignant arrhythmia. Emotional excitement may also induce high-sensitivity atrial fibrillation or other types of atrial fibrillation.

7

Taking certain medications

Certain drugs may have adverse effects on the heart. For example, drugs that inhibit potassium channels or calcium channels may prolong the QT interval or induce torsades de pointes; drugs that inhibit sodium channels may cause Brugada syndrome or Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome; drugs that stimulate the sympathetic nervous system may induce ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation; drugs that inhibit the parasympathetic nervous system may induce atrial fibrillation, etc.

8

Chronic lack of sleep

Lack of sleep can lead to sympathetic nerve excitement and parasympathetic nerve inhibition, resulting in increased blood pressure, increased blood viscosity, coronary artery constriction, etc., causing acute myocardial ischemia or malignant arrhythmias. Lack of sleep may also induce sleep apnea syndrome (SAS), which refers to repeated apnea or hypopnea during sleep, accompanied by physiological changes such as hypoxemia and carbon dioxide retention. SAS can cause a variety of risk factors such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, left atrial enlargement, etc., and can directly induce atrial fibrillation or other types of atrial fibrillation.

9

Chronic overeating

Overeating can cause the stomach to expand, squeezing the heart and lungs, affecting cardiopulmonary function and blood circulation. Overeating can also cause a rapid increase or change in blood sugar, blood lipids, insulin, etc., causing myocardial ischemia or arrhythmia.

10

Prolonged overwork

Overwork can put the heart in a state of high load for a long time, consume a lot of oxygen and energy, lead to myocardial ischemia, metabolic disorders, electrolyte disorders, etc., and cause malignant arrhythmias. Overwork can also lead to reduced immunity, infectious diseases, myocarditis, etc., affecting the structure and function of the heart.

in conclusion

There are many risk factors that cause sudden death, some of which we cannot change, such as age, gender, genetics, etc., and some of which we can change, such as long-term smoking, excessive drinking, etc. I hope everyone can try to avoid or control those risk factors that can be changed to reduce the risk of sudden death.

Another point that needs to be emphasized is that infusion in the left hand will not increase the risk of sudden death, and neither will infusion in the right hand. Don't be misled anymore!

Author: Meng Yao, doctor of medicine at Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University

Review | Xu Yingjia Chief Physician of Cardiology Department, Shanghai Fifth People's Hospital, Fudan University

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