Nigerian Cardiologist, Prof. Ranti Familoni has urged women to keep their hypertensive husbands away from Sunday’s AFCON final between Nigeria and Ivory Coast.
He issued the advisory on the heels of reports of no less than five individuals who slumped and passed away while watching the Nigeria Vs. South Africa semi-final game at the African Cup of Nations on Wednesday.
The professior of medicine and cardiology from Olabisi Onabanjo University further stated that the incidents should serve as an indicator of the importance of seeing ones doctor.
Familoni said; “Wives should be able to persuade susceptible persons to stay away from the match, particularly at critical times like penalty shootouts.
The match will come and go, but the individual and his life will continue. One good thing that can come out of this unfolding event is for everyone to take time to see their doctor and check their cardiovascular status.”
On how people can save a person who suddenly collapsed during such situations, he said; “Bystanders should not run away or begin to video or go for their phone cameras. Get the patient on a flat surface, and start mouth-to-mouth breathing and cardiac banging.
The role of the bystander is crucial since most of these deaths become inevitable within four minutes of the onset of the event. The role of the bystander begins with training information in the media about what we call basic life support or BLS. The victim must be laid flat on a firm to hard surface for mouth-to-mouth breathing and pounding of the chest to begin immediately.”
