Heart Attack in the Wilderness

[mountain mama]

Yesterday, a friend of mine died unexpectedly from a sudden massive heart attack. He was in great shape, only 58 yrs-old, and had an EKG just last week indicating he was fine. This got me to thinking....

What would you do if you or someone in your party had a heart attack in the wild and you were out of cell phone range and the closest hospital was over 3 hours away?

[mcfd45]

I am not a DR. Just an EMT. So use this info at your own risk, I am not liable for anything that happens to anybody that follows my advice.

Aspirin 325mg chew it up and swallow it.
if they have nitro and they have a radial pulse (at the wrist) give them one dose.
Make them comfortable.
send the person in your group that is in the best shape to the closest road, bar, ranger station, etc to get help.
fire off 3 shots if you have a firearm repeat many times.

[Sourdough]

What would you do if you or someone in your party had a heart attack in the wild and you were out of cell phone range and the closest hospital was over 3 hours away?

What if the hospital is 10 to 12 days away.......? We have a problem with people dieing in the wilderness, while having been dropped-off by aircraft for a 10 to 14 day hunt. The trick is keeping the birds, shrews, red-back voles, from eating the body. We try to get the body in their sleeping bag be for they get stiff, and wrap their coat over their head, and tie it on. Roll them in a blue tarp and tie it secure. The bad thing is the rest of the party can't all hunt, as someone needs to bears & foxes away.

[nell67]

Yesterday, a friend of mine died unexpectedly from a sudden massive heart attack. He was in great shape, only 58 yrs-old, and had an EKG just last week indicating he was fine. This got me to thinking....

What would you do if you or someone in your party had a heart attack in the wild and you were out of cell phone range and the closest hospital was over 3 hours away?

SO sorry for the loss of your friend MM.

mcfd45's advice is probably the best thing you can do for them in the wilderness,keep your first aid/CPR training up to date.

[Rick]

Sorry about your loss, Mountain Mama. I would suggest everyone become qualified in basic first aid and CPR. And if you are certified then think about a refresher since the thoughts on how to administer CPR have changed. If you live or work in a wilderness setting then a Wilderness First Aid or Wilderness First Responder course might be something to consider.

[Sourdough]

I thought that a Massive Heart attack, has low survivability even if your in the E.R. when it happens.

[Rick]

I don't mind the beeping the sounds. It's when they suddenly stop that I take notice. Especially if they are hooked up to ME.

[mountain mama]

I don't think my friend would have survived even if he was in the hospital when it happened, but there are too many people who die from minor heart attacks because they don't know what to do. A lot of people do recover from minor heart attacks (without being hooked up to machines for extended periods of time) because the situation is handled appropriately. I carry asprin with me everywhere I go, just in case. I am also current with my CPR and first aid training. Thanks mcfd45 for your professional advice here.

[tsitenha]

Sometimes, no matter what, a person will die, just part of the game/life.
Something we all have to accept whether we want to or not.
No garantees, just enjoy being out and about.

I have 2 already, second leading cause after alcohol related death on the rez.

[Sourdough]

Mountain Mama, I am sorry for the loss of your friend. This thread points to the reality about death, which is it is fun to think about & do the wilderness survival stuff; However the reality is you will die in a hospital, in the most undignified manner, with tubes draining everything, and tubes inputting everything.

Remy is right, a massive heart attack in the beloved wilderness, regardless of age is a good exit. I don't want to be killed by bears, but it would please me greatly for my used-up spawned-out body to be devoured by them, become bear poop to fertilize the blueberries for future wilderness wanders. I have a vision of Wareagle eating blueberries, and saying, "These are really sweet"..:):):)

[Rick]

I will probably never look at blueberries the same way ever again. In fact, I may just go out and pull up my blueberry bush.

[Ken]

I will probably never look at blueberries the same way ever again. In fact, I may just go out and pull up my blueberry bush.

Send 'em over. :) Blueberry bushes are on this year's list of things to plant.

[amy headrick]

Mountain Mama, I am sorry for the loss of your friend. This thread points to the reality about death, which is it is fun to think about & do the wilderness survival stuff; However the reality is you will die in a hospital, in the most undignified manner, with tubes draining everything, and tubes inputting everything.

Remy is right, a massive heart attack in the beloved wilderness, regardless of age is a good exit. I don't want to be killed by bears, but it would please me greatly for my used-up spawned-out body to be devoured by them, become bear poop to fertilize the blueberries for future wilderness wanders. I have a vision of Wareagle eating blueberries, and saying, "These are really sweet"..:):):)

Funny you say that. This is what was going through my head when I was lost. Not a bad place to die.

[Ken]

Funny you say that. This is what was going through my head when I was lost. Not a bad place to die.

I wanna' die of a heart attack, too. I want it to happen when I'm 98 years old, piloting my personal Lear Jet back from a scuba diving vacation in Aruba with my 21-year-old girlfriend. :innocent:

[Alpine_Sapper]

I wanna' die of a heart attack, too. I want it to happen when I'm 98 years old, piloting my personal Lear Jet back from a scuba diving vacation in Aruba with my 21-year-old girlfriend. :innocent:

lol. Nice. I'll wait until after we touch down, once she's finished the strip tease and moved on to...nevermind.

[Ken]

lol. Nice. I'll wait until after we touch down, once she's finished the strip tease and moved on to...nevermind.

Sapper - Don't count on it. She'll be way too tired. :innocent:

[mountain mama]

yeah as you will be 98, she will obviously be doing all the work

[Alpine_Sapper]

yeah as you will be 98, she will obviously be doing all the work

nah, that's what uppers and viagra are for. You can mix up a lethal cocktail that will have you partying for hours before the body can't handle it anymore. At least you go with a smile. :) When I go I just hope it's fast. **** living on machines. Pull the plug and let me go with dignity.

[mountain mama]

Alheimer's runs in my family. If y'all ever notice me losing my mind (more than is already gone) then just point me in the direction of the desert and let me wander off. If I make it back then you know my mind wasn't completely gone. If not, at least I won't be a burden.

[Rick]

I used to have a fear of dying. I went to a shrink for 10 years to work on it. Then he said those three little words that nearly drove me over the edge. No Hable Inglais.

[Ole WV Coot]

I had all the classes, and he probably wouldn't have made it but one thing that you don't need to learn is carry a tiny bottle of nitro tabs. I don't need them but they go in with aspirin. I sometimes ride with my GP and he told me it was cheap insurance, so I carry a bottle along with the aspirin. Most EMTs I know just have enough knowledge to be dangerous. Last class I was told what not to do to keep from being sued. Good samaritan laws are good, maybe. I have been fortunate enough not to help on anything serious but me, I tread with caution.

[oly]

Mountain Mama, I am sorry for the loss of your friend. This thread points to the reality about death, which is it is fun to think about & do the wilderness survival stuff; However the reality is you will die in a hospital, in the most undignified manner, with tubes draining everything, and tubes inputting everything.

Remy is right, a massive heart attack in the beloved wilderness, regardless of age is a good exit. I don't want to be killed by bears, but it would please me greatly for my used-up spawned-out body to be devoured by them, become bear poop to fertilize the blueberries for future wilderness wanders. I have a vision of Wareagle eating blueberries, and saying, "These are really sweet"..:):):)

I have been telling my wife for years that I hope to die in the mountains and give back to the earth. hopeak dont keep the animals away from me, let nature take its course.

[endurance]

CPR is great if you go into cardiac arrest due to a lightning strike. CPR works damn fine in the case of cold water drownings, especially with children. It works pretty well when you have a heart arrythmia and an AED is close by. But when it comes to a massive heart attack in the back country, you're dead.

What they don't teach you in the CPR class is that it's about 1% effective in the field. If you go into cardiac arrest in a hospital, your odds increase to about 25% for living long enough to take another breath on your own, but only about 10% for making it out of the hospital ever again. To expect someone to survive after being down for 3-4 hours while awaiting rescue isn't going to happen.

The best chance, as mentioned by others, is a minor heart attack and an asprin.