Held on May 27 and 28 and organized by Taif's Health Affairs department, Taif's annual cardiovascular symposium attracted a wide range of distinguished health professionals from around the Kingdom that work in different branches of cardiovascular medicine. The symposium's stated objective was to highlight ‘the most recent advances in the field of cardiovascular medicine. This will lead to the provision of better quality services to patients in general.' Taif's own health professionals were upbeat about the symposium. “Such symposiums are very important for physicians as experts from outside Taif come to deliver lectures and presentations to narrate their experiences and research in this field,” said Dr. Omar Al-Ameen, who works in the ER at Prince Mansour military hospital in Taif. “Besides the information we are getting, we can also achieve Continuous Medical Education (CME) hours, which are required by the Council for Health Specialities.” An important aspect of the symposium was to promote technological know-how about the wide range of equipment used in the field of cardiovascular medicine, and a number of cardiac catheter technicians were also in attendance. “I attended the echo and MRI workshops, where I learned about the history of 3D echocardiography and the most recent updates in diagnosing the mitral valve Prolapse, the four-chambers technique and the assessment of the left ventricle function,” said Ahmed Abdul Kareem, a cardiac technician. The symposium also offered a look at the advanced software that is becoming available to assess the ejection fraction (competency of heart function) in emergency cases through MRI. Though directly concerned with heart diseases, the symposium also provided discussion and information related to other fields including internal medicine, neurology and new technology. The constant research and development in the field of cardiovascular medicine was the primary concern of the symposium with a number of attendees expressing surprise at how advanced much of the field had become. Smokers beware Cardiologists and other physicians have been warning smokers about the adverse impact of this habit on the heart for decades. Much of the discussion at this symposium was no different, albeit with a number of frightening insights. “One new things I've learned here is that cigarettes imported to the Middle East are different from those in the West,” remarked Dr. Yaser Abdul-Fatah, a family medicine consultant at a hospital in Taif, reiterating what he heard a speaker state during a presentation on smoking. “What comes to the region is made from what's leftover, so that makes cigarettes a lot more harmful here than in the US, for instance.” Professor Mansour Al-Nozha is a consultant cardiologist at Medina University and he spoke at length during the symposium about the irrefutable link between smoking and cardiovascular diseases. “Smoking is a prevalent health problem amongst Saudis that requires intervention for cortication,” he warned. “We have found a clear relationship between smoking and coronary artery disease, particularly among men. What is needed, is constant education about the health hazards of smoking, geared especially at younger people to prevent the initiation of the habit.” Heart vs mind again Another interesting lecture during the symposium was given by Dr. Shireen Qureshi, a consultant neurologist at Aramco Hospital in Dhahran, who explored the relationship between cardiology and neurology in detail. “The relationship between cardiology and neurology medicine is very intimate and long standing because if you look at the risk factors between diseases in both fields, they share a lot,” she explained. Indeed, problems like hypertension are a major source of strokes, as is diabetes and dislypedimia (increase of lipid /cholesterol in the blood), which are major risk factors for arteriosclerosis. Strokes are also a major cause for fatalities in the Kingdom, as well as causing hemispheric strokes which result in weakness in limbs and aphasia (difficulty in speaking). Lifestyles need changing When asked whether stress and hypertension directly increase the risk of stokes, Dr. Qureshi answered, “The population of Saudi Arabia is young on average, and the biggest problem with our people is that we have adopted an unhealthy lifestyle. Eating habits, in particular are both leading to obesity and contributing to the incidence of strokes.” The solution lies in fitness and exercise and Dr. Qureshi lamented the current situation on that front. “How many of us have treadmills at home? Women say we cannot go outside to exercise, but people can still walk. In major cities, there are designated areas where people can walk. Unfortunately people are not trying, and the same goes for dietary habits; we can change our habits, substitute whole grain bread for white bread for instance,” she remarked. “If nothing, we can promote more activities in schools for our children, so that they won't have any excuse not to exercise,” she recommended. In fact, Dr. Qureshi advocates a much wider role for physicians in society. “Our responsibility includes to raise awareness in the community,” she said. “In schools, we should give children lectures about healthy diet, lifestyles and the risks of smoking. Public places like malls and charity societies are also places that provide a good environment for raising awareness.”
