Heart attack or DVT??

[SoCalDem]

Russert was a big guy, and since he had just flown from Italy the night before, I'm betting that DVT played a big part in his heart attack.. The airline seats these says are pretty cramped, and even in first class (if he flew first class) the lack of mobility for such a long time can compromise blood flow..

A man as heavily insured as he must have been would surely have been diagnosed/treated for heart disease if he had had it. Maybe he did, and told no one, but the sudden onset of troubles, so soon after a long flight , made me think immediately of DVT.

[JuniperLea]

1. I've heard of many heart attacks after a flight...

... in people who were never diagnosed with heart issues. Could very well be. I wonder if we'll ever know for sure.

[librechik]

2. He had stage 2 Diabetes

It's a huge risk factor

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. Type two... and yes it does increase your risks

but his risks were probably reduced since I can bet he got first class care

[RamboLiberal]

11. Chris Matthews has diabetes as well

I hate to say it but it is probably a wake-up call to him as well as others in that biz.

It's a shame the good guys get taken and the *%$*&$ RW jerk "pundits/blabbers/authors" keep hanging on. I'm sure you all know the ones I mean.

[KoKo]

37. Aren't you confusing him with Chris Matthews? There's no report Russer had Diabetes..

just saying... It must be Matthews you are thinking about. :shrug:

[librechik]

40. Someone in a position to know told me--but they could be wrong.

I know about Matthews too, but it was news to me about Russert, so I thought I'd pass it on.

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. We'll have to explain to the rest of the class

as most don't get this

Basically due to the lack of movement clots form and start ahem a-moving...

They can lead to strokes and heart attacks up to 72 hours after a long flight, anything after four hours

Oh and ask your doctor, but you can take medicine to help protect yourself and moving in a plane, as in actually walking in the cabin, is a good idea every so often

[MannyGoldstein]

4. Probably Unexpected Sudden Cardiac Arrest

Very common. Most victims have no known factors that put them at high risk. Although most victims are older than 65.

[babylonsister]

5. IF he flew first class?

Trust me, he did. That's a possibility but most people who fly a lot do like to walk around, shake out the clots. I'm sure we'll hear a more in-depth story eventually, but it doesn't much matter now.

Very sad. I'm glad he seemed to live his life to the fullest and got such great enjoyment out of it.

[Cleita]

6. Even my much younger relatives always come home from European vacations

a day early so they can rest before going back to work. DVT may have been a factor.

[SoCalDem]

9. My son & new daughter-in-law just got back from europe from their honeymoon

and they deliberately took flights that were not non-stoppers, so they would not have to be cooped up on a plane that long..

They flew home from Venice to London..spent a day, and then to NYC, and a day later back home to LAX..

[RamboLiberal]

8. You make a good point - same thing that took David Bloom

Who knows though if he had heart disease. I'm sure he had the insurance coverage to be tested/diagnosed for heart disease that many of us do not have. Still if he had been it wouldn't be in the public knowledge.

You have a good theory about the long airline flight perhaps causing a DVT.

Russert did carry some weight on his frame and he had been working a lot of hours lately with all the primary coverage.

[TexasObserver]

10. DVT leading to heart attack would be my first choice

[gateley]

12. Got an e-mail from NYT stating 'heart attack' was incorrect --

that he'd died from a coronary embolism:

Tim Russert of NBC Is Dead at 58

Tim Russert, the Washington bureau chief of NBC News and the
host of the program "Meet the Press," has died of a coronary
embolism at the age of 58, NBC has confirmed.

An earlier news alert stated incorrectly that the cause of
death was an apparent heart attack.

Read More:
http://www.nytimes.com/?emc=na

[SoCalDem]

13. Call me "Doc"..

It's a shame..didn't have to happen :(

[Brigid]

17. Hmmm . . . a coronary embolism . . .

Perhaps a DVT leading to a coronary embolism? Perhaps a clot caused by the flight broke loose and ended up in his heart? I guess we'll see.

http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/coronary+embolism

[Avalux]

21. DVTs cause PEs - pulmonary embolisms.

Fatal of the block the pulmonary artery.

[PaDUer]

28. The EMT's worked on him at the office..

now this is the 2nd possible cause of death..I hope the family does an autopsy..but, it happened in the DC office.

[Fleshdancer]

14. KO just announced that an autopsy will be conducted n/t

[leftofthedial]

15. the first symptom of heart disease is often a heart attack

and often fatal.

you KNOW he flew first class.

[Brigid]

16. That's exactly how it was for me.

I had heart disease that apparently had been developing undetected for years, until I had a heart attack last January. I had to have bypass surgery. If not for a very good cardiovascular center only a few minutes from work, where the attack occurred, I would not be here now.

[gblady]

43. me, too.....

major heart attack March 13, no hx, no sx, age 59....
only here because of rapid response paramedics and a quick helicopter ride to cardiac center...

[Disturbed]

18. Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) - MayoClinic.com
Deep vein thrombosis — Comprehensive overview covers symptoms, treatment, prevention of this blood-clotting disorder.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/deep-vein-thrombosis/DS01005

[leftofthedial]

25. yep. nasty stuff.

A guy I worked with had this and nearly died after a flight US to London.

He sat in coach.

[SoCalDem]

26. I made my husband get up and walk around every few hours when we flew to Tahiti

That was one ghastly long-ass flight.. The flight attendents reminded people on the intercom to stand up and walk a bit from time to time..

[leftofthedial]

27. this was about the time I first heard of the disease

it was in the news back in 1999? 2000?

[Avalux]

19. I tend to agree with you. Looks as if the first report of heart attack were wrong.

If it was a DVT large enough to cause this, he should have had symptoms. Small ones are usually broken down without sequelae. Very sad if he was experiencing pain/swelling/redness and didn't act on it. :-(

[SoCalDem]

23. Someone who was with him earlier, said he seemed to be not feeling well

but like so many men, he probably just shrugged it off as jet-lag..

[babylonsister]

20. I wonder if he was taking any drugs, like Vioxx? nt

[librechik]

22. just read the doctor said it was a coronary embolism

That's a clot

[Muttocracy]

24. I wondered about that too. From gateley's post sounds right. nt

[skooooo]

29. what is DVT?

It's nice if acronyms are explained up front. I have no idea what this is.

[SoCalDem]

30. Deep Vein Thrombosis

often caused by, exacerbated by long airline flights

from wiki:

eep-vein thrombosis (also known as deep-venous thrombosis or DVT and colloquially as economy class syndrome) is the formation of a blood clot ("thrombus") in a deep vein. It commonly affects the leg veins, such as the femoral vein or the popliteal vein or the deep veins of the pelvis. Occasionally the veins of the arm are affected (known as Paget-Schrötter disease<1>). Thrombophlebitis is the more general class of pathologies of this kind. There is a significant risk of the thrombus embolizing and traveling to the lungs causing a pulmonary embolism.

.....................................

It is recognized that thrombi usually develop first in the calf veins, "growing" in the direction of flow of the vein. DVTs are distinguished as being above or below the popliteal vein. Very extensive DVTs can extend into the iliac veins or the inferior vena cava. The risk of pulmonary embolism is higher in the presence of more extensive clots.

[Ilsa]

35. Or dehydration, especially if it accompanies "economy class syndrome". nt

[NashVegas]

34. Blood Clot

On long flights, you're supposed to get up and walk around a bit, to help reduce the risk.

[terrya]

31. And sometimes a heart attack is a heart attack.

My condolences to the Russert family.

[silverojo]

32. Well, it wasn't.

It was a coronary embolism.

[NewEnglandGirl]

33. Are they sure he had a heart attack?

Has anyone ruled out a brain aneurysm or something like that? First they said he collapsed and died at the office. Then it was reported that he was not DOA, that he died at the hospital. I'm just getting the feeling that there's a lot that isn't known yet.

[MiniMe]

36. That was my thought too since he just returned from Europe yesterday

I imagine that its hard for an EMT to tell the difference, the symptoms are probably the same.

[SoCalDem]

39. and when they see a man of his age, a bit chubby, unconscious,

a heart attack would be their first thought..they probably did not even know he had flown from Italy the night before..

A doctor once said that doctors hear hoofs and think horse...not giraffe

[Lifetimedem]

38. They are doing an autopsy

So hopefully we will know, but i think you are spot on

[spanone]

41. heart attacks can also strike like lightening....out of nowhere

[lojasmo]

42. cardiac arrest.

Unknown cause. People just say 'heart attack' when somebody goes down.

[jazzjunkysue]

44. Sad to hear. I always wondered about his weight and color.

No medical expertise here, but I've heard that some men of his age who are red in the face, from neck to scalp, are walking time bombs for stroke/heart failure.

I always wondered if he was pushing his luck. He looked like a bad health risk.

He always did his homework and let his guests get their ideas into the record. Then he turned around and held them to their own words.

He shilled for the GOP machine to ensure his access. Sure he did. But they all did. At least he made the interview about them and the relevant public policy, instead of bedroom rumors.

As they go, not many were in his class.

Sad to hear he died so young of something that might have been preventable.