TV actor Siddhaanth Vir Surryavanshi dies of heart attack at 46; cardiologists on possible causes

Popular TV actor Siddhaanth Vir Surryavanshi, also known as Anand Suryavanshi, died on Friday at the age of 46. The actor collapsed while working out at a gym after reportedly suffering from a heart attack, say media reports. Actor Shaleen Malhotra told Hindustan Times while on his way to the hospital that they did not have much details "except that he had a cardiac arrest." Siddhaanth started his career with Kkusum and did shows like Kasautii Zindagi Kay, Waaris and Suryaputra Karn. He was last seen on the Sony SAB show Ziddi Dil Maane Na. Death due to heart attack or cardiac arrest are becoming common in the world of entertainment and in the recent past Raju Srivastava, singer KK, Sidharth Shukla, Puneeth Rajkumar and many others lost lives due to cardiac death. Raju Srivastava and Puneeth Rajkumar had suffered a heart attack while working out in a gym. Experts say that the cases of heart attacks are rising in youth rapidly, especially in post Covid era and it's important for all to take care of their heart, keeping in view all the risk factors and their family history. (Also read: Comedian Raju Srivastava dies at 58; is too much exercise bad for heart?)

"There are several causes of cardiac arrest. The most common cause of cardiac arrest is a heart attack, where specific blockage of the coronary arteries supplying blood to the heart may get blocked due to acute clot formation and underlying cholesterol plaque. It is possible that sometimes cholesterol plaque does not necessarily narrow the artery severely, but rather 20-30-40 percent it can rupture due to extreme stress or unusual exercise. Thus, the rupturing of this plaque will lead to blood formation in the body leading to a heart attack. And this heart attack has a 50% chance of causing cardiac arrest in any person. The heart check-ups however do not apply to the whole population If someone is not having any cholesterol plaque in the coronary artery is unlikely to have a plaque rupture leading to heart arrest. We do tests like CT coronary if someone is having a strong history of cholesterol, diabetes, and if there is mild plaque or not," says Dr. Atul Mathur, Executive Director - Interventional Cardiology & Chief of Cath Lab, Fortis Escorts Heart institute, Okhla, New Delhi.

HEALTH OF BLOOD VESSELS IMPORTANT

"It is not just actors who are suffering heart attacks while working out. Any male or female can have a heart attack while working out. The issue here lies while we think we are healthy, we are not aware of the health of the blood vessels of the heart. The blood vessels of the heart may be harbouring blockages because of cholesterol deposition and these can burst any point in time more so while an individual does an activity that he is not accustomed to. To prevent heart attacks most important elements are look at your risk factor profile, look after your blood pressure, your blood sugar, do not smoke, have good cholesterol control, do not follow sedentary lifestyle. If you try and work on all these elements, there is a good chance that you can protect yourself from heart attacks. At the same time, if you already harbour these lifestyle disorders, look after them very well. Go to your cardiologist and get your stress risk stratification done. If you have disease in the blood vessels of the heart, make sure them are well looked after, treated and the necessary medical management done,"

Dr Aparna Jaswal Director - Cardiac Pacing and Electrophysiology, Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, Okhla, New Delhi told HT Digital in a telephonic interview.

STRESS AND COVID DEADLY COMBO

Experts say that stress and post Covid impact on heart health could be a deadly combo and people must keep a check on their heart health to prevent heart attacks.

"We have seen an increased trend towards cardiac problems in last few months especially after the post covid sequelae. This increased trend has been found in younger generation and especially the celebrities. Many celebrities have suffered cardiac arrest, cardiac problems in last few months especially in post Covid era. So, what are the common causes for that. They are probably increased stress levels and high expectations from themselves. Secondly, increased tendency of clot formation especially in those post covid patients. Thirdly, unhealthy lifestyle in terms of poor diet, sedentary lifestyle and fourthly, smoking has been a traditional risk factors for cardiac problems," Dr Rajesh Sharma, D.M. (cardiology), Senior Cardiologist, Saroj Medical Institute and Saroj Superspeciality Hospital, Rohini, Delhi, told us.

WORKING OUT TOO MUCH CAN KILL

Dr Ankur Phatarpekar, Director Cathlab and Interventional Cardiologist at Symbiosis Hospital, Mumbai said: "In several cases, we come across patients who are typically young, fit and healthy, and still suffer from a heart attack or cardiac arrest during or after the workout in a gym or while playing sports or running. One must understand anything you overdo will harm in long run than getting benefits from it. In rare cases, a heart attack in a gym can occur due to a blood clot in the heart due to certain reasons which affect the blood flow. Other comorbidities like cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, etc. can also contribute to heart diseases. Exercise in moderation is good and should not be over done."

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