With health emergency being declared in the national capital owing to alarming level of air pollution, it is no wonder that it is emerging as one of the reasons for heart attack in our country. Three cities of UP are also facing similar crisis with Ghaziabad almost at par with Delhi.While presenting these views at a CME on ‘Newer prospective in cardiac management’ organized at a prominent hotel in city cardiologists of Ajanta Hospital expressed concern for the urban population that was facing the threat. Senior cardiologist at Ajanta Hospital, Dr. Kirtimaan Singh said it is evident that people living in rural areas face lesser threat of heart diseases due to lower pollution levels there. He further added that now heart disease is not an age related factor and can happen to anyone above 25 years. “However, early detection and treatment decreases the chances of damage to the heart. It is a well proven fact Indians get heart diseases at least 10 years earlier than our western counterparts,” he said.Earlier while addressing the gathering, chief cardiologist at Ajanta Hospital Dr. Abhishek Shukla said that a combination of poverty, ignorance, lack of access to timely quality care are main drivers for high heart disease death in India. A heart attack patient can be saved provided he gets proper treatment during first 60 minutes of attack termed as the ‘GOLDEN HOUR.’ The quick action and awareness of the family members can help save one’s life and damage to the heart can be minimized with proper treatment under the supervision of a qualified cardiologist.“There are a few cathlabs to treat patients during the ‘GOLDEN HOUR’ and patients who get timelytreatment are relatively safe. “As per the data about 21 lakh people in our country die due to heart ailmentsevery year. Early angioplasty in heart attack reduces death by 32 to 50% and also prevents future heart failure. Less than 30% of patients receive timely angioplasty within in GOLDEN HOUR in India. Moreover this data is also confined to metro cities,” said Dr. Shukla. Main hurdle in timely treatment is unawareness of society & no wide spread availability of cardiac cath lab facilities performing Angioplasty in Golden Hour. Heart Disease in women is also common as compared to men and it has worst outcome usually due to delayed presentation. Women are almost three times more likely to die of heart disease than breast cancer. Heart Disease can also effect in children in many ways related to heart development defect and Rheumatic Heart Disease which are common in India. During the session, he also informed the gathering how the cardiology department of the Ajanta Hospital has been able to save dozens of lives with timely intervention of the cardiac treatment in the last 15 months.Senior nephrologist at the hospital Dr. Deepak Dewan spoke about the importance of healthy kidneys in maintaining a healthy heart. “A healthy heart depends upon proper functioning of the kidneys and vice versa. Hence healthy heart and healthy kidneys are very important for a healthy individual.”Finally managing director of the hospital Dr. Anil Khanna claimed that Ajanta Hospital with its team of well experienced cardiologists, technicians and other supporting staff along with a state-of-the-art cath lab has become an excellent alternative for patients who want quality and prompt cardiac treatment. In past 15 months, the success rate and survival of our patients had been excellent. Several health camps were also organized during the year to create awareness among the masses.The academic session was followed by dinner and Gazal session. The event was attended by 200 prominent doctors of the district representing government organisations like CGHS, ECHS, RAILWAY (NR, NER, MCF & RDSO), KGMU, RML Institute, and SGPGI. Private practitioners and members of IMA, and LNHA were also present during the session.Salient Points - Lack of awareness about timely treatment a major cause of death among heart patients. There are few cathlabs to treat patients during the ‘GOLDEN HOUR’. About 21 lakh people die due to heart ailments in India. Early angioplasty in heart attack reduces death by 32 to 50%. Less than 30% of patients receive timely angioplasty in India.