Fit, healthy and dead at 53: What heart risks are we missing?

Fit, healthy and dead at 53: What heart risks are we missing?

Dr Chandrashekhar Pakhmode, a well-known brain surgeon from Nagpur, died from a massive heart attack in the early hours of New Year's Eve. He was just 53. What's shocked everyone is that he was health-conscious and had a perfectly normal ECG only three days before.

He collapsed around 6 am and was rushed to hospital, but doctors couldn't save him. His sudden death has raised an uncomfortable question: are we missing important warning signs of heart disease?

Stress, long hours and rubbish sleep

Dr Ranjan Shetty, a senior heart specialist at Sparsh Hospital in Bengaluru, says he's seen loads of doctors have heart attacks, mainly because of extreme stress, long shifts, poor sleep and burnout.

"When blood sugar, cholesterol and other routine tests come back normal, stress is often the biggest hidden danger," he says. "This is especially true for doctors and other people in high-pressure jobs."

He explains that blockages in key heart arteries—especially the left main artery or the LAD artery—can be deadly. These arteries supply blood to a huge chunk of the heart muscle. If they suddenly block up, the damage can be massive and often fatal.

Dr Shetty remembers a young doctor who had a 100% blockage in the left main artery. Despite having angioplasty and being put on life support, he died.

Why blockages in the left artery are so dangerous

A complete blockage in the left main artery cuts off nearly half of the heart's blood supply. This can destroy heart muscle very quickly and mess up the heart's electrical system, causing dangerous rhythm problems. Often, this leads to sudden cardiac arrest.

Can stress alone cause a heart attack?

Yes, it can.

Long-term stress causes constant inflammation in the body. This weakens blood vessels and makes it easier for "bad" cholesterol (LDL) to stick to artery walls and form blockages.

Stress also triggers hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. These increase your heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol. When this happens day after day, your heart slowly takes damage.

Even short bursts of stress can be dangerous. A sudden rush of adrenaline can cause an existing plaque in the artery to rupture, forming a clot that blocks blood flow and triggers a heart attack.

Studies show that people with high stress, depression or emotional strain are more than twice as likely to have a heart attack compared to those with low stress.

High stress often goes hand in hand with high blood pressure. Young professionals frequently ignore this. Constant high blood pressure damages artery walls and increases heart risk even more.

Doctors also tend to brush off warning signs like unexplained tiredness, mild chest pain, nausea or dizziness, putting it down to work fatigue.

Why heart attacks often happen early in the morning

Between 3 am and 6 am, your body releases stress hormones to get you ready for the day. These hormones raise blood pressure and heart rate and increase your heart's demand for oxygen.

At the same time, your blood gets slightly thicker because you're dehydrated, and your body's ability to break down clots is lower. This makes clots more likely to form.

That's why heart attacks commonly happen in the early morning hours.

Dr Shetty advises people to take it easy for at least half an hour after waking up. "Don't check your phone straight away or dive into stressful stuff," he says.

Can a normal ECG still miss heart disease?

Yes.

An ECG can look completely normal in the early stages of a heart attack, or when blood flow is reduced but there's no permanent damage yet. This condition is called unstable angina, and a routine ECG might not pick it up.

People with diabetes may have very mild symptoms or none at all, and their ECG changes can be minimal.

That's why doctors also use blood tests like troponin, which can detect even tiny amounts of heart muscle damage.

The bigger lesson

Good fitness, a normal ECG and clean test results don't always mean zero risk. Chronic stress, poor sleep and burnout are silent but powerful threats to your heart. Ignoring them can be fatal—even in people who seem perfectly healthy.