What is a heart attack? (2023)

FAQs

What is a heart attack short answer? ›

A heart attack happens when the flow of oxygen-rich blood in one or more of the coronary arteries, which supply the heart muscle, suddenly becomes blocked, and a section of heart muscle can't get enough oxygen.

The terms myocardial and infarction aren't only used to refer to heart attacks. The term myocardial is used in other medical terms that refer to heart muscle.

chest pain – a feeling of pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across your chest. pain in other parts of the body – it can feel as if the pain is spreading from your chest to your arms (usually the left arm, but it can affect both arms), jaw, neck, back and tummy. feeling lightheaded or dizzy.

While no one particular heart rate qualifies as a heart attack, a rapid heart rate outside 60 to 100 beats per minute should be monitored closely. Doctors cannot say that a particular heart rate qualifies as a heart attack. Your heart rate is not a reliable indicator that you are having a heart attack.

A heart attack, also known as a myocardial infarction, happens when the flow of blood that brings oxygen to a part of your heart muscle suddenly becomes blocked.

Time. How long heart attack symptoms occur. Mild heart attack symptoms might only occur for two to five minutes then stop with rest. A full heart attack with complete blockage lasts much longer, sometimes for more than 20 minutes.

Silent Myocardial Infarction (SMI).

These less severe heart attacks are also referred to as “mild heart attacks”, “minor heart attacks”, or “mini heart attacks”.

The technical term for a “mini” heart attack is a non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). While the term “mini” heart attack may sound as though it is less severe than other types of heart attack, this condition is still serious and constitutes a medical emergency.

Type 1 describes patients with a plaque rupture. Type 2 involves a condition other than coronary artery disease (the plaque-caused hardening of arteries) contributing to an imbalance between the heart's oxygen supply and demand, such as bleeding or a stroke.

A heart attack is a medical emergency in which the blood supply to the heart is suddenly blocked. Warning signs that occur a month beforehand could be chest discomfort, fatigue, and shortness of breath.

What is a pre heart attack? ›

Pre-Heart Attack Symptoms – Female

Men may feel pain and numbness in the left arm or the side of the chest. In women, these symptoms may appear on the right side. Women may experience unexplained exhaustion, or feel drained, dizzy or nauseous. Women may feel upper back pain that travels up into their jaw.

Lung issues, including infection (pneumonia) or a blood clot (pulmonary embolism) Muscle pain, such as inflammation or injury to the muscles in the chest wall. Other digestive issues, such as inflammation or spasms in the pancreas, gallbladder or esophagus. Panic attack, or very intense anxiety.

Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center or left side of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes or that goes away and comes back. The discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain. Feeling weak, light-headed, or faint. You may also break out into a cold sweat.

Those with an anxiety disorder have most likely experienced a panic or anxiety attack at some point in their lives. The symptoms can closely mimic heart attacks for some people—they may feel chest pain, shortness of breath and heart palpitations, or a racing heartbeat.

Stress may lead to high blood pressure, which can pose a risk for heart attack and stroke. Stress also may contribute to such cardiovascular disease risks as smoking, overeating and lack of physical activity. "Chronic stress has been shown to be associated with increased cardiovascular events," Schiffrin said.

Treatment. Half the deaths from a heart attack occur in the first 3 or 4 hours after symptoms begin. It is crucial that symptoms of a heart attack be treated as a medical emergency.

Some heart attacks strike suddenly. But many people have warning signs and symptoms hours, days or weeks in advance. Chest pain or pressure (angina) that keeps happening and doesn't go away with rest may be an early warning sign. Angina is caused by a temporary decrease in blood flow to the heart.

Fatality rates used to be as high as 50%. However, more than 90%⁷ of people today survive a heart attack. Surviving a myocardial infarction is primarily due to recognizing the symptoms, getting prompt treatment, and prevention awareness.

The most deadly type of heart attack is the ST-elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI). STEMI is a total or nearly total blockage of a coronary artery that supplies oxygen-rich blood to part of the heart muscle. Lack of blood and oxygen causes that part of the heart to fail.

What are silent heart attacks? ›

A silent heart attack is a heart attack that has few, if any, symptoms or has symptoms not recognized as a heart attack. A silent heart attack might not cause chest pain or shortness of breath, which are typically associated with a heart attack.

Takotsubo syndrome is a sudden and acute form of heart failure. Symptoms can be similar to a heart attack. It is also known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy, broken heart syndrome, acute stress induced cardiomyopathy, and apical ballooning.

Although most cases of chest pain are harmless, you should go to the emergency room immediately if your chest pain is intense, prolonged, or is accompanied by other symptoms. Here are some symptoms that may indicate you need immediate medical attention: Difficulty breathing/shortness of breath. Confusion/disorientation.

The very first symptom of a heart attack listed by the American Heart Association is "uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain in the center of your chest." This discomfort may come in waves lasting more than a few minutes at a time.

If you've had a silent heart attack, you may not know it occurred until you have an imaging test like an EKG, MRI, CT scan, or ultrasound. An EKG is one tool that doctors use to find evidence of previous heart attacks, but it's best used when combined with other diagnostic techniques like blood tests and imaging.

A mild heart attack often doesn't cause much permanent heart damage or only affects a relatively small portion of the heart muscle. It could be the result of a blockage that occurs in a small coronary artery, or the blockage does not completely block blood flow to the heart, or it only lasts a brief time.

Sudden cardiac death is the largest cause of natural death in the United States. It causes about 325,000 adult deaths in the nation each year. Sudden cardiac death is responsible for half of all heart disease deaths. Sudden cardiac death occurs most frequently in adults in their mid-30s to mid-40s.

Taking aspirin during a heart attack is safe and recommended. If you think you're having a heart attack, call 911 or emergency medical services. Don't delay calling for help. Aspirin alone won't save your life if you're having a heart attack.

“I understand that heart attacks have beginnings and on occasion, signs of an impending heart attack may include chest discomfort, shortness of breath, shoulder and/or arm pain and weakness. These may occur hours or weeks before the actual heart attack.

At what time do heart attacks happen? ›

“Most heart attacks hit during the early morning hours from 4 – 10 am when blood platelets are stickier, and there is increased adrenaline released from the adrenal glands that can trigger rupture of plaques in coronary arteries,” said Dr.

How long after a heart attack can doctors use the test? Doctors can test for troponin immediately when an individual presents with symptoms. Troponin levels rise as early as 4 hours after a heart attack and peak between 24 and 48 hours. Increased levels can persist for 7 days or longer, depending on kidney function.

Apple Watch cannot detect heart attacks. If you ever experience chest pain, pressure, tightness, or what you think is a heart attack, call emergency services immediately. The irregular rhythm notification feature on Apple Watch is not constantly looking for AFib.

A silent heart attack, also called a silent Ischemia, is a heart attack that has either no symptoms, minimal symptoms or unrecognized symptoms. A heart attack is not always as obvious as pain in your chest, shortness of breath and cold sweats.

Common heart attack signs and symptoms include:

Pressure, tightness, pain, or a squeezing or aching sensation in your chest or arms that may spread to your neck, jaw or back. Nausea, indigestion, heartburn or abdominal pain. Shortness of breath. Cold sweat.

Unfortunately, many people don't even realize they're having a silent heart attack because they're not having obvious symptoms. But a heart attack of any kind is an emergency. You should call 911 right away even if you don't know for sure that you're having a heart attack.

They may think it's just indigestion or muscle pain, when the real cause is actually reduced blood flow to the heart. People may also experience other atypical symptoms, such as nausea or excessive sweating during a heart attack (see "Heart attack symptoms").

Stable angina is not usually an emergency, but it can be painful and frightening and should prompt further medical investigation. Unstable – When angina becomes unstable, it is often the precursor to a heart attack, which is a medical emergency.

Usually, chest pain is less likely due to a heart problem if it happens with: A sour taste or a sensation of food reentering the mouth. Trouble swallowing. Pain that gets better or worse when you change body position.

What would blood pressure be during a heart attack? ›

Blood pressure might drop if someone is having a heart attack because the heart is too weak to maintain it, as the muscle might have been damaged. The severe pain a person might feel during a heart attack could also trigger an automatic response, which might lead to decreased blood pressure and fainting.

Signs of a heart attack include:

- Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach. - Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort. - Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness. (If you're experiencing any of these symptoms, call 9-1-1 immediately.)

The difference is that, when extra heartbeats in the upper and lower chambers are the cause of abnormal rhythm, symptoms may feel like an initial skip or hard thumping beat followed by a racing heart. When anxiety is the trigger, heart rate typically increases steadily rather than suddenly.

Abstract. Cardiophobia is defined as an anxiety disorder of persons characterized by repeated complaints of chest pain, heart palpitations, and other somatic sensations accompanied by fears of having a heart attack and of dying.

You might receive clot-dissolving drugs (thrombolysis), balloon angioplasty (PCI), surgery or a combination of treatments. About 36 percent of hospitals in the U.S. are equipped to use a procedure called percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), a mechanical means of treating heart attack.

Lung issues, including infection (pneumonia) or a blood clot (pulmonary embolism) Muscle pain, such as inflammation or injury to the muscles in the chest wall. Other digestive issues, such as inflammation or spasms in the pancreas, gallbladder or esophagus. Panic attack, or very intense anxiety.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of heart attacks. CHD is a condition in which the coronary arteries (the major blood vessels that supply the heart with blood) become clogged with deposits of cholesterol. These deposits are called plaques.

Symptoms of a mini heart attack are similar to a regular heart attack but last for a shorter time and include: Pain, pressure, tightness, or discomfort in the chest. Pain, tingling, squeezing, or discomfort in other parts of the upper body, including the arms, back, neck, jaw, or stomach. Shortness of breath.

Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center or left side of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes or that goes away and comes back. The discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain. Feeling weak, light-headed, or faint. You may also break out into a cold sweat.

What not to do for a heart attack? ›

You may not even know you've had a silent heart attack until weeks or months after it happens. It's best to know what's normal for your body and get help when something doesn't feel right. Knowing the subtle signs of a silent heart attack can help you identify one.

Have the person sit down, rest, and try to keep calm. Loosen any tight clothing. Ask if the person takes any chest pain medicine, such as nitroglycerin for a known heart condition, and help them take it.

- Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of the chest that comes on quickly and won't go away with rest. - Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach. - Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.