Beware of six diseases that may occur suddenly at night in winter

The cold winter is a season when various diseases are prone to occur, especially the number of deaths due to cardiovascular diseases will also increase. The elderly have weaker resistance and those who suffer from cardiovascular disease or prostate enlargement should pay more attention to keeping warm to prevent sudden illness at night that threatens their precious lives.

The following are six types of sudden illnesses that are common among the elderly at night. Everyone must know how to handle first aid to avoid unfortunate events.

Urinary retention

Urinary retention occurs when the bladder fills with urine and cannot be discharged normally.

The elderly often suffer from prostate hypertrophy. Under the stimulation of cold weather, the prostate can easily cause bladder outlet obstruction, resulting in sudden inability to urinate. Or they may hold their urine because they are afraid of getting up in the cold at night, which weakens the tension of the bladder detrusor muscle, makes urination difficult, and induces acute urinary retention.

In case of acute urinary retention, you can use a hot water bottle or a heated salt bag to apply heat to the lower abdomen. If the situation is critical, you should go to the emergency room, insert a catheter, or perform suprapubic bladder puncture and catheterization.

Angina

Angina pectoris is a series of symptoms caused by temporary myocardial ischemia and hypoxia due to insufficient blood supply to the coronary arteries.

The most common triggers of angina pectoris are physical labor, exercise, mental work and emotional excitement, which lead to sympathetic nerve excitement, coronary artery constriction, and increased venous blood return during sleep at night, which increases the heart load, all of which can lead to angina pectoris. Spontaneous angina often occurs without warning in the early morning during daily activities such as dressing, washing, bathing, and urinating or defecating.

When angina pectoris occurs, oxygen can be given immediately if conditions permit to improve myocardial ischemia, and the patient can be given nitroglycerin or quick-acting heart-saving pills sublingually. Usually, relief can be achieved within 1 to 2 minutes.

Cerebral infarction

Cerebral infarction is caused by impurities or blood clots in blood vessels or other parts of the body, which are washed away by blood flow to form emboli, leading to necrosis of brain tissue and dysfunction.

People who are accustomed to smoking, drinking, salting, eating high-fat foods, and those who are easily angered and have a bad temper are more likely to suffer from cerebral infarction. Elderly people are afraid that drinking water at night will increase nocturia and therefore limit their water intake, which results in increased blood viscosity, slow blood flow and cerebral infarction.

Patients with cerebral infarction often develop the disease when they are resting quietly. Some patients wake up and find that their mouth and eyes are crooked, they are hemiplegic, they are drooling, they drop rice grains when they eat, and they cannot lift their chopsticks. This is a cerebral infarction.

When a cerebral infarction occurs, never shake the elderly, otherwise it may cause the embolus to fall off and cause other complications, and immediately give drugs to dissolve the embolus. You should take aspirin in small doses as prescribed by your doctor, adjust your diet, and drink a glass of cold water before going to bed and when you get up at night to reduce blood viscosity.

asthma

Asthma is wheezing and difficulty breathing caused by narrowing of the bronchi, which prevents air from flowing in and out of the lungs.

Elderly people with chronic bronchitis, emphysema and cor pulmonale develop asthma due to parasympathetic nerve excitement and vagus nerve hyperactivity during sleep at night, which leads to contraction and spasm of bronchial smooth muscles. Shortness of breath is more common late at night or before dawn, and patients often wake up due to shortness of breath around 2-4 a.m. Asthma attacks can be mild or severe, and severe cases may be life-threatening.

When asthma attacks, aminophylline can be given, or salbutamol spray, isoproterenol, etc. can be used. In severe cases, oxygen should be given immediately.

gout

Gout is a disease caused by uric acid accumulation due to urinary metabolism disorder. It is a type of arthritis, also known as metabolic arthritis. This is because the concentration of uric acid in the human blood is too high. Since the temperature of joints is usually lower, uric acid will be deposited in the joints. Over time, it will form crystals, causing the body's immune system to overreact (sensitize) and cause painful inflammation.

Gout, toothache and labor pain are considered the three major pains in life. When gout attacks acutely, the first thing to do is to keep the painful joints in a state of rest, do not rub or massage, and apply ice to the affected area to relieve redness, swelling, heat, pain and other discomforts, then seek medical attention as soon as possible. Painkillers containing aspirin will increase the uric acid level in the blood and make the condition more serious, so they should be avoided.

Gout patients must pay attention to their calorie intake in their daily diet. They should avoid eating too much meat, alcohol, and high-purine foods such as shellfish and red meat. It is better to eat them in moderation and exercise more.

Acute abdominal pain

There are many reasons for abdominal pain. Some elderly people suffer from diseases such as gallstones and kidney stones. When the sleeping position changes at night, the stones move and impact the bile duct or ureter, causing spasm and acute abdominal pain. At this time, you should change your position immediately, and press the Zusanli, gallbladder point, Neiguan, Guanyuan and other acupoints to relieve pain. If the patient is an elderly person with ulcer disease, antispasmodics such as 654-2 can be used to relieve symptoms.

The most important thing in diet is to eat less salt and drink more water, consume plenty of fluids, and avoid eating too much food rich in oxalate. Taking magnesium and vitamin B6 can reduce the recurrence rate.