In conjunction with World Heart Day, Dr James Cai, Consultant from the Department of Cardiology at National Heart Centre Singapore (NHCS), a member of the SingHealth group, answers your questions about risk factors for a heart attack and what you can do to lower your risk.

Helping Dr Cai is Assistant Nurse Clinician Joan Nurjono from NHCS Cardiology @ SKH (Sengkang General Hospital) who will also answer some questions.

This forum is open from 1 Sep to 27 Sep 2024.

To submit a question, email it to singhealth.healthxchange@singhealth.com.sg

Please allow up to two weeks for your question to be answered. We reserve the right to choose which questions to answer, and to close the forum early. You will be notified by email if your question is answered and all answered questions will be shown on this page.​​

Our heart is a critical organ, responsible for pumping blood throughout our body, sustaining the functions of vital organs. 

The heart itself is supplied by coronary arteries which provides oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle. 

A heart attack, also known as acute myocardial infarction (AMI) or acute coronary syndrome (ACS), occurs when one of the coronary arteries becomes abruptly blocked, cutting off blood flow to a region of the heart muscle. 

Without prompt restoration of blood flow, the affect muscle can suffer irreversible damage.

A heart attack is a medical emergency requiring immediate treatment. Knowing the signs and symptoms of a heart attack will help you recognise a heart attack and obtain timely help.

Understanding the underlying cardiovascular risk factors can help you to reduce the risk of having a heart attack as well.

Don't miss this chance to ask Dr James Cai and Assistant Nurse Clinician Joan Nurjono on what causes increased risk of a heart attack, and what you can do to avoid an attack.

About Dr James Cai

Dr James Cai is a Consultant from the Department of Cardiology at National Heart Centre Singapore. His special interest is in non-invasive cardiac imaging, specifically echocardiography and nuclear cardiology. 

He set up and has been running the post-acute coronary syndrome (Post-ACS) clinic with Assistant Nurse Clinician Joan Kirana Nurjono in NHCS Cardiology @ SKH since 2022 and has a strong interest in improving care for patients after their myocardial infarction.

About Assistant Nurse Clinician Joan Nurjono

Assistant Nurse Clinician (ANC) Joan Nurjono has been a nurse for 21 years and is a cardiac specialty nurse at Sengkang General Hospital (SKH). She has vast experience in caring for patients with various cardiac conditions and has been educating and supporting patients in their rehabilitation journey after a myocardial infarction. ANC Joan has been working with Dr James Cai to manage the NHCS Cardiology @SKH since it began in 2022.

Ref: H24