Frustrated Chinese father suffers a heart attack ‘while trying to help his son with his homework’
- Mr Liu, 45, felt sharp chest pain while explaining a maths question to his son
- The Chinese father suddenly passed out after ‘feeling extremely frustrated’
- He fainted again upon arriving at hospital and was resuscitated by medics
- Doctors said the patient’s heart attack was triggered by intense emotions
A Chinese man has nearly died from a severe heart attack after he got extremely upset while helping his son with homework.
The 45-year-old father, known by his surname Liu, sought medical attention after he began suffering sharp chest pain and suddenly passed out while explaining a maths question to his Year 3 son.
Upon arriving at the hospital, he fainted again and was saved by the medics who gave him CPR.
Doctors said the patient’s condition was triggered by the intense stress and anger Mr Liu felt while he was helping with his child’s schoolwork.
The 45-year-old father, known by his surname Liu, sought medical attention after he began suffering chest pain and suddenly passed out while explaining a maths question to his Year 3 son. The file photo shows students working in a classroom at Huaiyang Middle School
Mr Liu had been helping his son with homework since the new semester started this month, according to a report by the hospital in southern Chinese city Shenzhen.
For the past two weeks, the Chinese father would feel minor pain in his chest when he got extremely frustrated while supervising his son’s work.
On Sunday, the parent became upset again after repeatedly explaining the same math question to the Year 3 student, who was struggling to get the answer.
Mr Liu then started suffering sharp chest pain and shortness of breath before suddenly passing out. He woke up later and sought medical attention at the Shenzhen Third People’s Hospital the next day.
Soon after he arrived at the hospital, the Chinese father fainted again and started twitching and frothing at the mouth. He was stabilised minutes later after medics immediately gave him a resuscitation.
A Chinese man has nearly died from severe heart attacks after he got extremely upset while helping his son with homework. In this file photo, pupils sit at a class at a primary school on the first day of a new semester on September 1, 2020 in Kunming, Yunnan province
While examining the patient, doctors found that a part of Mr Liu’s main coronary artery was clogged, blocking the supply of blood to the heart.
Dr Gao Hong from the hospital said that Mr Liu’s recent heart attack had been triggered by intense emotions, such as stress and anger, while helping his son’s homework.
Being a smoker for years also contributed to his condition, according to the medic.
Mr Liu’s situation would’ve been ‘unimaginable’ if he did not come to the hospital on time, Dr Gao added.
After undergoing an emergency operation, Mr Liu is now in stable condition while slowly recovering at the hospital.
Although Mr Liu’s heart attacks involved dramatic chest pain and fainting, many others can be overlooked with vague symptoms dismissed as a virus or fatigue.
Dr Gao Hong from the hospital said that Mr Liu’s recent heart attacks had been triggered by intense emotions, such as stress and anger, while helping his son’s homework
Occasionally, there are no symptoms at all when someone experiences a heart attack.
Silent myocardial infarction (SMI) — as it is medically known — accounts for up to 50 per cent of the 100,000 heart attack hospital admissions each year.
They’re ‘silent’ since they lack the intensity of classic heart attacks, such as chest pain, stabbing pain in the arm, or sweating and shortness of breath.
Yet internally they’re identical to a normal heart attack — the blood supply to the heart is suddenly blocked by a build-up of fat and other substances in the arteries that feed it — causing damage to the tissue. The damage can be cumulative, leading to potentially fatal blockages.