Health Information Guide
In many cases, heart and vascular disease can be prevented by lifestyle changes such as eating healthy, exercising and quitting tobacco. Take a minute and read some of this health information to see if it could make a difference in your life.
Health Tips and Prevention
Additional Online Resources
Support Groups
Heart Attack Warning Signs
Some heart attacks are intense and quite obvious. However, most heart attacks are more subtle, often beginning with only mild pain or discomfort.
What’s important is to recognize the following signs and act quickly by calling your doctor if they are brought on with activity and improve with rest.
- Chest discomfort (pain, squeezing, pressure) that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away but then comes back
- Pain or discomfort in upper body (neck, arms, jaw, back, even stomach)
- Shortness of breath with activity
- Lightheadedness, dizziness
- Cold sweat
- Nausea
Be Smoke Free
Within 20 minutes of not using tobacco, your blood pressure is close to normal. Within 24 hours, your chance of a heart attack decreases and within one year, your heart attack rate drops in half. Samaritan Health Services (SHS) offers classes and support groups to help. Please call one of these resources for more information:
General health topics
WebMD
Health Finder
Health Insurance
Samaritan Health Plans
eHealthInsurance
Nutrition and Supplements
Healthy Eating Series
Office of Dietary Supplements
Pharmacy
Pharmacy Checker
Smoking
CDC – Tobacco information and smoking cessation
Smoking cessation
Travel
Samaritan International Travel Clinic
Women and Heart Disease
The Heart Truth®
WomenHeart
The Samaritan Heart & Vascular Institute does not endorse the efficacy or accuracy of the information contained in the referenced Web sites. Independent and specific medical advice concerning your medical condition should be sought before making exercise, dietary, pharmaceutical or lifestyle changes.
Healthy heart classes are offered throughout Samaritan Health Services and present education and emotional support for people who have had a heart attack or bypass surgery. Family members and people from the general public who simply want to know more about heart disease are encouraged to participate.
For more information about support groups, please call one of the following locations:
- Samaritan Albany General Hospital: (541) 812-5441
- Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center (Corvallis): (541) 768-5323
- Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital: (541) 451-7888
- Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital: (541) 996-7160
- Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital: (541) 574-4856