Symptoms of Heart Problems

Every year there are around 5000 people who die from heart attack. In addition, an estimated 5,000 people undergo bypass operation. With these alarming figures, we all know how serious disease heart problems are and the best defense we have against heart disease is early detection and early treatment.

According to studies, early treatment for heart disease is more effective than treatment when the disease has advanced, so it’s vital to know the symptoms of heart problems. Although there is no single symptom that could indicate an existence of a heart problem there are symptoms that suggest the possibility of a heart disease:

Chest pain – a kind of pain that you feel in your chest which could last for a few seconds or even for a few days. This could be a symptom of a heart disease like heart attack, heartburn, angina etc. However, not all chest pain is related to heart disease alone.  Having a chest pain could also be related to asthma, peptic ulcer, anxiety, etc.

Palpitation of the heart – this usually happens when a person feels irregularity on his or her heartbeat like a rapid heartbeat or a pause on it.

Dizziness – this symptom also suggests a heart disease however there are also several conditions related to this like anemia, dehydration, diabetes, etc.

Fainting or Loss of consciousness – temporary loss of consciousness may suggest a heart disease but this is a common symptom which does not indicate a serious health problem.

Shortness of breath – this is a common symptom of a lung or cardiac disorder. When a person experiences this, it’s important to seek medical attention.

It’s important to note here that not everyone with heart disease would experiencesymptoms of heart problems. Meanwhile, not everyone who has experienced symptoms mentioned above mean they have heart disease. If you feel something is wrong with your body, it’s best to consult your doctor the soonest possible time.

The statistics for heart problems is alarming – every 33 seconds someone would be a victim of a heart attack. That someone could be your mother, your father, or your sister, or even a close friend. What’s even alarming is that 55% of those victims would not even have a clue of an upcoming heart attack.

Studies have shown that every year there are over 1 million Americans who have been a victim of heart attack. And more than half of those would die within an hour of the attack. And it’s a fact that more than half of deaths in the United States are related to cardiovascular disease making it the number 1 cause of death in this country.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women in the United States. One in every 3 women dies from it. With these alarming facts, it’s important to find out the symptoms of heart problems women.

Several studies have established that the common symptoms of heart problems women are sleep disorder and unusual fatigue. Also, other symptoms of heart disease include indigestions, shortness of breath, and anxiety. Unlike men who suffered from heart attacks, there are fewer women victims who reported experiencing chest pain prior to the attack.

In addition, some women victims of heart attack also experience pain in the jaw, back, and arm, nausea, and sweating before they had the attack.  And what’s common among these heart attack victims is that they delay seeking treatment once the symptoms begun.

The best way to know if you are suffering from a symptoms of heart attack is to seek medical attention as soon as you feel that something is wrong. Early detection and early treatment is always your best guard against heart disease. Do not delay seeking medical help for it will always be for your own best.

Every kind of heart disease has a different symptom – each symptom depends on the kind and seriousness of your heart disease. But in general heart problems share the same symptoms. If you suspect that someone you know is suffering from heart problems it would help you to better understand this disease if we take a look at different signs and symptoms of heart problems:

Angina or in lay man’s term chest pain is considered as the most common symptom of coronary artery disease. This may be characterized by pain, pressure, discomfort, and a fullness feeling in your chest. Although as the name suggests, chest pain does not only occur in the chest area but can also be felt in your shoulder, jaw, back, neck, or throat.

Aside from chest pain, there are other signs and symptoms of heart problems like:

• Unexplained sweating
• Shortness of breath
• Palpitation
• Nausea
• Fatigue
• Dizziness

Now the next question is what symptoms of heart attack require a call to the doctor? And these are:

• A heart rate of more than 100 beats per minute (BPM)
• Extreme fatigue
• Poor appetite/nausea
• Constant feeling of dizziness
• Pain in the chest or discomfort feeling during activity
• Difficulty in breathing whether doing an activity or while resting
• Changes in sleeping behaviour like difficulty in sleeping
• Cough or respiratory infection that has gone to worse
• Restlessness
• Irregularity in the heartbeat
• Feeling of being full in the stomach/loss of appetite

Those are the signs of heart problems that require you to seek medical help as soon as possible. Remember, heart disease is a potentially fatal disease. In fact, it is considered as the leading cause of death among women in the United States. It’s important to know that there are several factors that could contribute to the risk of getting heart disease like: smoking, age, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and family history.

Taking care of your health could lessen the risk of getting heart disease. If you need to consult your doctor for potential heart disease, do not delay it, consult your doctor now.

Heart attack is a fatal disease. When one experiences a heart attack, the first hour of the attack is considered as the “golden hour”.  This is when your chances of surviving a heart attack are greatly improved if you do something within the first hour.

Unfortunately, not everyone is aware of this. A lot of people do not seek medical help when they first experience symptoms of a heart attack. In general, people would often let the symptoms go for the fear of going to the hospital and finding that nothing is wrong with them.

Knowing the symtoms of heart problems is vital to improve a person’s chances of surviving this fatal disease. So what are the symtoms of heart problems?

One of the most common symtoms of heart problems is similar to angina; however it is much longer and more lasting. Angina (or chest pain) usually happens for 15 minutes. If you have experienced chest pain longer than that or you have chest pain that was not relieved by resting, go to the hospital.

Other symtoms of heart problems involve dizziness, weakness, shortness of breath and sweating. Also, if you are experiencing a heart attack you may feel crushing pain that runs in your shoulder and spreads to your neck, jaws, and/or down your back. Moreover, nausea, indigestion, upper back pain, arm pain (could be either left or right arm but more often in left arm) are all symptoms of heart attack.

If you are experiencing symptoms of heart attack here are the things that you should do:

1. It’s important to sit down, take a rest and be calm.
2. Take nitroglycerin tablets (up to three tablets). This is usually taken one at a time with a five minute interval or what is prescribed by your doctor.
3. Aspirin is a good substitute for nitroglycerin but do not take it if you’re allergic to it.
4. If you still experience pain 3 minutes after taking medication, call 911.

It’s important that you do not delay seeking medical help if you are experiencing signs of heart problems. If you wait for 15 minutes for the pain to go away, this could cause serious damage to your heart or even cause your life.

Heart problem is a serious disease. It is considered as the leading cause of death not only in the United States but also in Canada and England, causing death to millions of people every year.

In addition, more than 60% of American women in 2004 died of heart problems than all kinds of cancer combined.  Moreover, even women of color are at risk of getting a heart disease. Studies have shown that Hispanic, Latina, and African American women have higher risk of getting heart disease as compared to white women.

There are certain symptoms of heart problem that could help you understand heart disease. These signs are:

• Chest pain or discomfort in your chest
• Pain or discomfort in other parts of your upper body like arms, back, neck, jaw, or stomach.
• Shortness of breath, this maybe characterized by difficulty in breathing
• Sweating, clammy or cool skin
• Nausea
• Dizziness
• Palpitations

Meanwhile, having signs of heart problems is similar to those symptoms of heart problem. If you feel pain or have suffered those signs of heart problems for more than five minutes, it’s important that you call 911.

Also, studies have shown that heart attack normally happens from 4 AM to 10 AM because of the increased amount of adrenaline released by our body in the morning. An increased in adrenaline can be a significant factor that could cause rupture of the plaque which could lead to formation of the clot and then to heart attack

Also, not all symptoms of heart attack happen with a chest pain. In fact, a significant number of heart attacks – about one fourth of the heart attack victims, do not experience chest pain. This is more likely to happen with people who have diabetes.

Moreover, for those people who live in northern regions, heart attacks are likely to happen during winter months.

In addition, although people thought that heart attack occur often during exercise, it is actually the opposite. In general, heart attacks do not usually happen during exercise.

If you are suffering from a heart problem or you suspect that you are suffering from a heart disease it’s important to seek medical help as soon as possible.

Are women at risk of getting signs of heart problems just like men?

To give you a better idea, let me just mention some of the facts regarding heart disease among women:

• In the United States, one in every three women die from heart disease, making it the leading cause of death among women who are more than 65 years of age;
• As compared to breast cancer, American women are 4 – 6 times likely to die of heart disease
• As compared to all cancers combined, heart disease kills more American women who are 65 years and above

Although as compared to men, women develop heart disease later in life, around 7 – 8 years later. However, it cannot be denied that by the time women reach the age of 65, their risk of getting heart disease is the same with men. And for the last 20 years, studies have shown that heart attack for women from ages 34 to 54 have been increasing.

So with these facts, we all know that women are also at risk of getting heart disease just like men. And with these, we should all pay attention to our health.

One of the important things that we should know about heart disease is the symptoms of heart problems in women. And just like men, it is a common symptom for women to experience chest pain when they have heart disease. However, there are several conditions that could cause chest pain. Having chest pain does not necessarily mean a person is having a heart disease. Moreover, there are some who have heart disease but do not experience chest pain at all.

Also, there are other symptoms of heart attack in women like:

• Dizziness
• Running out of breath
• Unexplained sweating
• Nausea
• Sudden or overwhelming fatigue
• Pain along the neck, jaw, or upper back

According to studies, as opposed to men, women are less likely to survive a heart attack. And the reason for that is still unknown. The best way to fight heart diseases is still and will always be early detection which would lead to early treatment. Be aware of these symptoms, to help you protect the life of your loved ones and even your own life.