About the Heart --> Heart Disease --> Symptoms of a Heart Attack

A heart attack occurs when an area of heart muscle dies or is permanently damaged because of poor supply of oxygen to that area. It usually occurs when a blood clot blocks the flow of blood through a coronary artery (a blood vessel that feeds blood to a part of the heart muscle). Interrupted blood flow to your heart can damage or destroy a part of the heart muscle.

What you eat, how often you exercise and the way you deal with stress all play a role in how well you recover from a heart attack. In addition, by making changes in your lifestyle, you can help prevent a first or second heart attack.

Symptoms of a Heart Attack

A heart attack may have many signs and symptoms. Not all people who have a heart attack have the same ones or feel them to the same degree. For example, heart attack symptoms in women, in older adults and in people with diabetes tend to be less apparent. Some people have no symptoms at all. Still, the more signs and symptoms you have, the higher the chances that you may be experiencing a heart attack.

• Chest pain below the sternum (breastbone) is a major symptom of a heart attack, but in many cases the pain may be mild or even completely absent, especially in the elderly and diabetics.
  

• Back pain
  

• Abdominal pain
  

• Pain that spreads to:
  
  • the chest, arms, shoulder
    
  • the neck, teeth, and jaw
  • the back
    

• Pain that goes on for greater than 20 minutes
  

• Pain not relieved by rest or nitroglycerin
  

• Pain that may be described as:
  
  • bad indigestion
    
  • intense, severe,
    
  • squeezing or heavy pressure
    
  • a tight band on the chest
    
  • "an elephant sitting on my chest"
    

• Shortness of breath
  

• Cough without cold symtpoms
  

• Lightheadedness - dizziness
  

• Fainting
  

• Nausea or vomiting
  

• Sweating, which may be excessive
  

• Dry mouth
  

• Impending sense of doom
  

• Anxiety
  

A heart attack usually strikes suddenly. It can occur anytime - at work or play, while resting, or while in motion. However, about half of all heart attack victims have warning signs and symptoms hours, days or weeks in advance. The earliest warning sign of an attack may be chest pain (angina) that's triggered by exertion, emotions, excessive food intake, or extremes in heat or cold and goes away with rest.

Angina is caused by temporary, poor blood flow to the heart. The medical term for poor blood flow to the heart is cardiac ischemia.

• Angina usually lasts 5 to 10 minutes and is usually relieved with Nitroglycerin. Look for more information about Nitroglycerin under the "Medications" Tab.
  

• Angina may be brought on by exertion, stress, a heavy meal, or extreme heat or cold.
  

• With angina, there is no lasting heart damage, but more frequent and severe pain may indicate that the plaque is growing bigger and may mean a heart attack could happen soon.