Dinesh Gundu Rao, Health Minister
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Based on the success of the Puneeth Rajkumar Hrudaya Jyothi Yojane that is currently being implemented in 86 government hospitals, the Karnataka Health Department is now working on extending the scheme in all taluks.

The Health Department named Karnataka’s heart attack (ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction – STEMI) management project at taluk level as Puneeth Rajkumar Hrudaya Jyothi scheme last year. The project launched to avoid delay in providing diagnosis and treatment to heart attack patients in rural areas is being implemented on a ‘hub and spoke’ model.

September 29 is observed as World Heart Day.

Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao told The Hindu on Saturday that based on the success of the scheme, it would now be extended across the State. “As of now, 86 hospitals (15 districts and 71 taluk hospitals) are functioning as ‘spoke’ centres. Besides, 10 ‘hubs’ were created in 16 super-specialty hospitals, including Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research. As the scheme is doing very well, we are working on shortly extending the scheme in all taluks,” he said.

Lives saved

Since March 2023, of the 2,69,091 patients who presented with chest pain in these 86 healthcare facilities, doctors have been able to save the lives of 2,363 patients, including 390 aged below 45.

Besides, doctors were able to save the lives of 245 patients, who presented with symptoms of heart attack since July 2024 by administering tenecteplase injection, a first-line treatment for heart attack, under the scheme. This injection is used to treat myocardial infarctions (heart attacks) as soon as possible (usually within nine hours) after the onset of symptoms.

While private hospitals charge over ₹25,000 for one tenecteplase injection, the Health Department has been providing it for free to the patients under the scheme since this July. All critical patients are being followed for up to six months to check their health condition, post-discharge, which in turn is helping in the reduction of the morbidity burden of the State.

AI technology

Using artificial intelligence (AI) technology, the doctors were able to detect if the patients’ condition was critical and if they required the tenecteplase injection.

Mr. Gundu Rao said anyone who has symptoms of chest pain can visit the ‘spoke’ centres and get an ECG done immediately. “Through AI technology, doctors are able to detect if their condition is critical or not, within four or five minutes. If the patient is in critical condition, he/she will be administered the expensive tenecteplase injection free of cost,” said the Minister.

CVD burden

As per the Indian Council of Medical Research, India State-level Disease Burden Initiative, 2016, CVD and STEMI result in the highest number of deaths (over 35% in the age group of 40 and above) in Karnataka. CVD death rate in Karnataka is 289.5 per one lakh population, while ischemic heart disease contributes to 24.7% of the CVD deaths per year; thus putting around 40,000 people at risk for cardiovascular diseases in Karnataka every year.