Paul O’Grady suffered from numerous health woes before his death
What's the difference between a heart attack and cardiac arrest?
On March 28, 2023, Paul O’Grady died unexpectedly at his home from a sudden cardiac arrhythmia. Aged 67, the entertainer’s heart stopped beating while laying in bed next to his husband, Andre Portasio. A deadly cardiac arrest is caused by a dangerous abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia), the British Heart Foundation (BHF) explained.
The charity elaborates: “The rhythm of your heart (which controls your heartbeat) is controlled by electrical impulses.
“If the electrical impulses go wrong, it can cause an abnormal heart rhythm known as an arrhythmia.” Some arrhythmias can lead to cardiac arrest.
The BHF adds: “Your heart’s rhythm and electrical impulses are no longer there after death.
“This means an abnormal heart rhythm can’t be found and the heart’s structure will appear normal.”
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When this occurs, the cause of a cardiac arrest can’t be found, so sudden arrhythmic death is recorded.
Before the tragic loss of life, O’Grady developed heart disease and had several heart attacks.
Heart disease
The NHS cautions that coronary heart disease “is a major cause of death in the UK and worldwide”.
There might be signs of heart disease which, if felt, should be brought to the attention of a medical doctor.
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The main symptoms of heart disease can include:
- Chest pain (angina)
- Shortness of breath
- Pain throughout the body
- Feeling faint
- Feeling sick (nausea).
These symptoms can appear when the heart’s blood supply is blocked by fatty substances that can build up in the coronary arteries.
The Mayo Clinic points out the risk factors for developing heart disease, such as:
- Poor diet
- Lack of exercise
- Obesity
- Smoking.
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The health body warns heart disease can increase your risk of a heart attack, which is exactly what happened to O’Grady.
A heart attack (medically referred to as a myocardial infarction) might lead to:
- Chest pain – a feeling of pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across your chest
- Pain in other parts of the body – it can feel as if the pain is spreading from your Chest to your arms (usually the left arm, but it can affect both arms), jaw, neck, back and tummy
- Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
- Sweating
- Shortness of breath
- Feeling sick (nausea) or being sick (vomiting)
- An overwhelming feeling of anxiety (similar to a panic attack)
- Coughing or wheezing.
Any of these signs should be reported to 999 “immediately” as it’s a medical emergency.
Arrhythmias can be a lasting complication from a heart attack, the NHS confirmed.
Such a complication can be “life-threatening”, with many people dying soon after a heart attack.
“Many people die suddenly from a complication of a heart attack before reaching hospital or within the first month after a heart attack,” the NHS says.
This is why heart disease and heart attacks should be taken extremely seriously.
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