‘Healthy’ young man dies of heart attack in Shaheen Bagh, family & friends in deep shock
The passing away of 39-year-old Umar Khalid, who had no history of heart disease, from cardiac arrest in his Shaheen Bagh home a few days ago, has left residents in deep shock.
“He had no history of heart disease. After completing his night shift on the morning of September 5 he was getting ready to drop his son to the school. Having prepared a coffee for himself and his wife he took the first and last sip at about 7 am and suffered a cardiac arrest,” said Umar’s father Khalid Rasheed, a well-known face in Delhi.
After doing his MBA from England, Umar was associated with Tech Mahindra.
An Aligarian, Rasheed, who before settling down in Shaheen Bagh with his family years ago after working for years in West Asia and originally from Uttar Pradesh, said as his younger son and he were out of the town, Umar’s wife and mother rushed him to the nearest hospital situated in the same building.
“Despite doctors’ effort to revive him, Umar could not be saved and he suffered a sudden heart failure in medical terms it is called cardiac arrest,” said Rasheed, whose column regularly appears in an Urdu national daily on social and Muslim issues.
Umar, who was laid to rest in Shaheen Bagh graveyard on the same day, has left behind two children and a wife.
The cases of sudden death of healthy persons with no cardiovascular problems from cardiac arrest have been debated by experts.
“Eight out of 10 times, the cause of a cardiac arrest is a blockage in the heart. For 20 per cent of the cases, there could be a different reason. The problem of non-detection of heart-related ailments is a very serious issue,” said Ashok Seth, head of cardiology at Fortis Escorts Hospitals, New Delhi.
According to the Indian Heart Association, 50 per cent of all heart attacks in Indian men occur under the age of 50 and 25 per cent of all heart attacks in Indian men under the age of 40.
According to a media report, 12 lakh youngsters die of cardiac arrest every year in India.
