WNKY News 40 Health Reports: Pay attention to your heart

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Shoveling ice and snow is tough work.

And it’s not just rough on your back…It can take a toll on your heart.

Just ask Roy Tyler, the operating room manager at Tristar Greenview Hospital in Bowling Green.

Tyler says he was shoveling ice and snow and began to feel pressure in his chest. He took a break, and the pain subsided. His wife convinced him make an appointment to see his doctor. After testing by a cardiologist, he learned he needed surgery to take care of the blockage in his heart.

But coming to terms with the idea that his heart was in distress wasn’t so easy. Tyler says he was in denial that he had a problem, even while he was on a treadmill during the stress testing his cardiologist ordered.

Winter storms pose a complex challenge for the cardiovascular system, according to April Hollis, a nurse practitioner at Tristar Greenview.

Hollis says the weight of the ice and snow stresses the heart, but the cold temperatures also cause the blood vessels to the heart to constrict, which reduces blood flow to the heart, starving it of oxygen.

And, she says time is of the essence if you ever experience chest pain or pressure, especially if it travels to your arm, neck, or face. She says getting to an emergency room or calling 9-1-1 is important to limit the damage to your heart.