'Heart disease strikes Indian expats in UAE younger'

Indian expatriates in the UAE are at an increased risk of developing heart diseases almost a decade earlier than their Western counterparts, a study has found.

The study by Aster Hospitals Dubai found out people from South East Asian countries including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Philippines are most at risk for developing heart diseases in the prime years of their life.

In fact, the heart disease strikes them almost a decade earlier than their Western counterpart, researchers said.

The study was conducted on patients from diverse backgrounds with coronary artery disease (CAD), who had undergone interventional procedures at Aster Hospital in the last three months.

The younger segment of Indian expats living here are increasingly prone to CADs due to a number of reasons, than any other nationalities and they get it earlier now than before, according to the study.

"Our clinical data is a reminder that prevention should start early in life before problems develop. Cardiac disease is now far from rare in younger men," said Sachin Upadhyaya, Specialist Cardiologist at Aster Hospitals.

"It gets little attention when a 70- or 80-year-old succumbs to it, but our eyes widen when a 30- or 40-year-old is stricken. In fact, the risk of heart disease rises steadily and sharply with age," Upadhyaya said.

"Many surveys conducted in India indicated that 40 per cent of the people suffering from heart attack are under the age of 55," he said.

"But the figures are even more alarming for Indian expats living in UAE as there is a steep rise in the numbers with two-thirds of the total number of patients. About 106 patients out of 142 people in the data analysed were under 55 years," he added.

"We conducted the clinical study aimed at creating awareness among the expatriate population to take care of their heart health eventually leading to the wellbeing of their families, the nation and the economy," said Sherbaz Bichu, CEO at Aster Hospitals Dubai.