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Fan Yan Fu
Cardiology
About me
Jiamusi University Affiliated Second Hospital, Department of Cardiology, Chief Physician, Professor, Master of Medicine.
Proficient in diseases
Diagnosis and treatment of complex heart diseases, emergency rescue of critical cardiac conditions, coronary artery intervention techniques.
Voices
Can myocardial infarction recover?
After a myocardial infarction occurs, the myocardium cannot return to its original state. Thus, the heart itself also constrains the overall state of the body, and the whole body can no longer return to its original state. Myocardial infarction means the necrosis of myocardial cells. The heart itself loses some of its myocardial function, and after losing part of the myocardium, myocardial remodeling occurs. These changes act as compensation, and through aggressive treatment, the function of the remaining myocardium can be preserved to the greatest extent. If a myocardial infarction occurs, immediate interventional treatment or thrombolytic therapy can prevent myocardial cell necrosis, or even make it minimal. In this case, the heart as a whole is nearly normal, and its function is unaffected. The larger the area of myocardial necrosis, the less remaining function the heart has. If the area affected by the myocardial infarction is relatively small, and with aggressive, long-term treatment, the function of the heart can be preserved to the greatest extent. Thus, the prognosis is generally better. The larger the area of myocardial infarction, the worse the prognosis.
Does patent ductus arteriosus require open chest surgery?
Now, many cases of patent ductus arteriosus do not require open-chest surgery, as they can be treated minimally invasively by cardiologists through what is called interventional treatment. The ductus arteriosus is actually a vessel between the aorta and the pulmonary artery during the embryonic stage, which usually closes shortly after birth. If it does not close, it results in a congenital heart disease. In the past, before the widespread use of interventional treatments, open-chest surgery was required to ligate the vessel. With the broad implementation of interventional treatments, cardiologists can now treat this condition minimally invasively. This is mainly done by delivering a spring coil through a catheter to the ductus arteriosus which then blocks the vessel, allowing it to gradually close and thus achieve the therapeutic goal. Alternatively, a gelatin sponge can be delivered to the ductus arteriosus through a catheter to block and eventually close the vessel, achieving the desired treatment outcome.
Why do we need to supplement potassium for heart failure?
Potassium ions are very important in the cardiac muscle cells, playing a critical role in maintaining the stability of the electrical activity of these cells. Thus, in conditions like heart failure or other cardiovascular diseases, it is essential to keep potassium levels within a certain range in order to reduce serious cardiac events. When potassium levels fall, cardiac electrical activity can become disordered, potentially leading to a sudden cardiac arrest. This is particularly the case in heart failure where the cardiac muscle cells are in a diseased state, making them more sensitive to low potassium levels. Thus, they are more prone to sudden cardiac arrest or sudden cardiac death. Therefore, for cardiovascular diseases, particularly heart failure, there is a high priority on supplementing potassium, generally increasing it to above 4.0 and even around 4.5 to be safe. Additionally, patients with heart failure often have poor diets, leading to lower potassium intake and consumption of potassium-rich foods, necessitating pharmacological potassium supplementation. Heart failure patients frequently use diuretics, which can lead to higher potassium loss, thus requiring additional potassium supplementation. For these reasons, potassium supplementation is particularly emphasized in patients with heart failure.
Can people with rheumatic heart disease eat raw onions?
Patients with heart disease must undergo lifestyle modification treatments before some specific treatments, which is a priority. What does improving lifestyle include? It includes appropriate exercise according to the patient's condition, a rational diet, a pleasant mental state, and adequate sleep, which are lifestyle practices adopted by all heart disease patients. A rational diet includes a certain amount of carbohydrates, a variety of fruits, vegetables, and more. As long as these are healthy dietary foods and the patient is not allergic and can tolerate them, they can be consumed. Can patients with rheumatic heart disease eat onions? Yes, they can. First of all, onions are just a type of food. As long as the patient does not have stomach diseases and can tolerate spicy foods, they can eat onions. Onions themselves do not have any special effects; they are simply a vegetable with a spicy taste. They might stimulate appetite, and when appetite is poor, using them may help increase it. Onions do not possess any special effects; they are merely a vegetable and can be consumed if tolerated.
Can someone with a ventricular septal defect travel by airplane?
Generally, individuals with ventricular septal defects (VSD) with no complications do not display symptoms and are able to travel by airplane. When such defects are at an early stage, where cardiac function has not been significantly impaired and there is left-to-right shunting without heart failure or pulmonary hypertension, flying is generally tolerated. After surgery for a ventricular septal defect, patients usually can fly. However, if the patient with a ventricular septal defect is older and in the advanced stages of the condition, exhibiting clear symptoms of heart failure such as difficulty breathing and chest tightness with significant exertional stress, such patients are unable to lie down and should not fly. Additionally, if there is right-to-left shunting or severe pulmonary hypertension has developed, it is unsafe for them to fly as they could potentially face emergencies during the flight.