G. R. No. 179177
19 of 29
http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2009/july2009/179177.htm
experiencing a strain and/or ischemia. A barrage of cardio-vascular tests followed
thereafter, including the Coronary Angiogram, to fully assess the condition of petitioner
Nisdas heart. The Coronary Angiogram irrefutably exposed petitioner Nisdas Severe Three
[66]
Vessel Coronary Artery Disease and Left Ventricle Diastolic Dysfunction.
According to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institutes of the National Institutes
[67]
[68]
of Health,
the primary medical research agency of the United States of America,
coronary artery disease is a condition in which plaque builds up inside the coronary
arteries. These arteries supply the heart muscle with oxygen-rich blood. When the coronary
arteries are narrowed or blocked, oxygen-rich blood cannot reach the heart muscle. This
can cause angina, a feeling of pain in the chest area or discomfort that occurs when not
enough oxygen-rich blood is flowing to an area of the heart muscle. It may also feel like
pressure or squeezing in the chest which can be felt in the shoulders, arms, neck, jaw, or
back. Generally, the pain tends to get worse with activity and go away with rest. Or a heart
attack, which can occur when blood flow to an area of the heart muscle is completely
blocked. When oxygen-rich blood is prevented from reaching a specific area of the heart
muscle, the tissue of the affected area can die. Another common symptom of the disease is
shortness of breath, due to fluid build up in the lungs in the event of heart failure or when
the heart cannot pump enough blood throughout the body.
The severity of these symptoms varies. The symptoms may get more severe as the
buildup of plaque continues to narrow the coronary arteries. Some people who have
coronary artery disease, however, have no signs or symptoms, and the disease may be left
undiagnosed until a person shows signs and symptoms of a heart attack, heart failure, or
[69]
arrhythmia.
We observe that the physical discomforts of petitioner Nisda, for which he sought
medical attention as early as 5 May 2002 when he was brought to the clinic in Saudi
Arabia, bear the hallmarks of coronary artery disease. Such disease does not develop
overnight. The plaque in the coronary arteries would have taken months, if not years, to
build up, making it highly probable that petitioner Nisda already had the disease during the
life of his POEA-SEC, although it went undiagnosed because he had yet to experience the
symptoms.
In Seagull Shipmanagement and Transport, Inc. v. National Labor Relations
1/28/2016 1:07 PM