Snow shoveling tied to massive spike in heart attacks at Ontario hospital [Video]

Southlake Health’s Regional Cardiac Program says it responded to double the usual number of heart attacks last week, and doctors say it’s linked to shovelling snow.

The Newmarket hospital confirmed that between Feb. 12 and 20, it saw 34 patients with heart attacks linked to shovelling snow.

“It certainly seemed like the volume was much greater than normal, and there’s no question that it was linked to the weather,” said Dr. Chris Overgaard, chief of the department of cardiac health at Southlake, the regional hub for emergent heart attack care servicing York Region and southern Simcoe County.

He said this past week was the highest number of heart attack cases linked to snow shovelling he could recall in the last few years.

While most patients were in their 50s to 60s, Overgaard said they did see some patients with other risk factors below the age of 40.

Overgaard pointed to studies that …