What would you do if something went wrong with your heart, will you know it?
Not all hearts and their problems come with a clear sign of warnings. In real life it is nothing like how you see in movies, there will not always be an alarming chest clutch followed by a quick fall on the floor as shown on the big screens of movies. Some heart attack (myocardial infarction (MI)) problems are not even in the chest and it’s not always easy to tell what is going on with your heart.
If you are not sure about anything or have a little hint of doubt go and get it checked out. And that’s especially true if you are 60 or older. Even if you are overweight or have diabetes, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol you should check your heart by the doctor frequently. The more risk factors you have the more you need to be concerned about anything that is related to your heart.
Watch For These Signs Of A Heart Attack
- Discomfort in Chest : The most common and easy to guess sign of heart danger is the discomfort in the chest. You can feel pain, little tightness, or pressure in your chest when your artery is blocked or are having a heart attack. This feeling of discomfort usually lasts for longer than a few minutes. It can happen any time even when you are at rest or even when you are doing something physical. If you feel a very brief pain or if it’s a spot that hurts more then it’s probably not your heart but you should still get it checked out by a doctor. But keep in mind that you can have a heart problem or even a heart attack without experiencing chest pain.
- Stomach pain, Nausea, Indigestion, or Heartburn : These signs of a heart attack are more likely to report in Women. Of course, you may have an upset stomach for many other reasons that have nothing to do with the heart, it can be because of something you ate, after all. But you have to be aware of it that it can also happen during a heart attack.
- Pain in the Arm : The classic heart attack symptom is the pain that radiates down the left side of the body. It always starts from the chest and moves outward but it also has arm pain that turns into heart attacks.
- A feeling of dizziness or lightheaded : You can lose your balance or feel faint for a moment because of a lot of things. It can be because you didn’t have enough to eat or drink or you stood up very fast. But if you feel unsteadiness and have chest discomfort or are going through shortness of breath then we would suggest you call a doctor right away. It can also mean that your blood pressure dropped because your heart isn’t able to pump the way it should and this can be symptoms of heart attack.
- Jaw or Throat Pain : Jaw or throat pain isn’t probably heart related, it is most likely caused by a muscular issue, cold, or a sinus problem. But if you are having pain or pressure in the center of your chest that spreads and goes up to your jaw or throat then it could be a sign of heart attack. Seek for medical attention immediately and call 911 to make sure everything is all right.
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Symptoms Of Heart Attack
- Exhaustion : If you are feeling fatigued or winded after doing something that was easy for you in the past like climbing the stairs or carrying some weights then you should make an appointment with your doctor and consult them right away. Extreme exhaustion or weakness can be experienced sometimes for days especially for women.
- Snoring : It is normal to snore while you snooze but if you snore loudly that sounds like gasping or choking can be a sign of sleep apnea. Several times at night while you are still sleeping you stop breathing for brief moments which puts extra stress on your heart. Your doctor will check if you need a sleep study and if you need a CPAP machine to smooth your breathing while your sleep.
- Sweating : In a cold, if you still sweat then this could be a signal of a heart attack. Get to the hospital immediately and try not to drive yourself.
- Heart beat that is Irregular : Your heart can race when you are feeling nervous or excited or you skip a beat and that is totally normal but if you feel that your heart of beating out of time for more than a second or this happens often, tell your doctor about this for further precautions.
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Common Heart Attack Treatments
We are sharing some common heart attack treatments which are listed here to help you out. For getting more details on this please consult the doctor.
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- Artificial heart valve surgery : In this treatment, the abnormal or diseased heart valve is replaced with a healthy one.
- Angioplasty : A special tubing with an attached deflated balloon is threaded up into the coronary arteries in this treatment.
- Angioplasty, Laser : Similar to the angioplasty treatment except this that the catheter has a laser tip that opens the artery that is blocked.
- Bypass Surgery : In this heart attack treatment the blocked heart arteries are treated by creating a new passage for blood to flow into your heart muscle.
- Artherectomy : This is also a similar treatment to angioplasty except that the catheter has a rotating shaver on its tip to cut away the plaque from your artery.
- Cardiomyoplasty : It is an experimental procedure in which the skeletal muscles are taken from the patient’s abdomen or back.
- Heart Transplant : In this treatment, the doctors remove the diseased heart and replace it with a healthy donated human heart.
- Minimally invasive heart surgery : It is an alternative to standard bypass surgery.
- Transmyocardial revascularization (TMR) : In this heart attack treatment a laser is used to drill a series of holes from the outside of the heart into the heart’s pumping chamber.
- Radiofrequency ablation : To carefully destroy the selected heart muscle cells in a very small area a catheter with an electrode at its tip is guided through the veins to the heart muscle.
- Stent procedure : A wire mesh tube used to prop open an artery during angioplasty is a stent.
There are many medical devices and treatments other than the ones mentioned here to treat certain heart attacks.