The more you snow: Heavy snowfall increases threat of heart attacks

Editor's note: This is an update of a story first posted in December 2014.

The monster blizzard that struck Buffalo in November 2014 was responsible for an estimated 14 deaths, most due to cardiac issues resulting from the exertion of shoveling or pushing stuck vehicles out of the 85-inch snow dump.

While the snowfall expected this weekend is nowhere near that severe, it still presents a serious health threat.

"It's because you're giving yourself a stress test, and you're failing," said Dr. Bryan Gargano of Rochester General Hospital.

"You would not go from not working out at all, sitting on the couch, to running a marathon. Snow this heavy, in extreme temperatures, puts a lot of stress on the body. It's a significant workout."

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Cold temperatures increase the risk of a heart attack, not only because of the physical challenges of negotiating snow-clogged streets and sidewalks, but also because the body must work harder to keep up its core temperature.

"Your blood goes to the central body, because your body is trying to stay warm," Gargano said. "It's more common to have a heart attack in the morning, because of your circadian rhythms. In the morning you're revved up to get going. People tend to be shoveling early in the morning, because they're trying to get somewhere."

There are several different types of heart attacks, which differ from cardiac arrest, in which a patient's heart completely stops beating. Unlike the classic Hollywood screen heart attack, symptoms vary from person to person, ranging from mild to severe. Signs can come and go; some people who have experienced heart attacks show no symptoms at all.

Common signs of a heart attack include chest discomfort; pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach; shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort; breaking out in a cold sweat, or feeling nauseous or lightheaded.

"Most people, particularly men, feel that crushing, elephant-on-the-chest pressure," Gargano said. "And by most, I mean more than 50 percent." Most older women, however, tend to experience a period of, " 'I just don't feel right,' " he said.

"Not everyone's nerves are wired the same way inside as they are outside. Sometimes those nerves connected to different organs pass very close to each other.

"The difference is, what does the heart sit near? And what side of the heart is going to be affected by the heart attack? If it's the front of the heart, you're going to get that elephant-on-the-chest pressure. If it's the back, or the bottom of the heart, closer to the esophagus, you'll get that nausea, indigestion feeling."

The best preventive measures, absent a triathlete training regime? Planning for the inevitabilities of winter in Rochester.

"I have a plow service," Gargano said. "And I have two little girls who like to play in the snow."