Chest pain can be a symptom of a heart attack. Call triple zero (000) immediately and ask for an ambulance if your chest pain is severe, getting worse or has lasted for 10 minutes.
You want to call 911 if you are having sudden, crushing chest pain or if your chest pain radiates into the jaw or the left arm. You want to call 911 if your chest pain also causes shortness of breath, or dizziness, nausea, or vomiting.
A visit to the ER for chest pain can be life-saving. When your chest pain persists, is severe, or is accompanied by shortness of breath, nausea, radiating pain, and changes in heart rate and blood pressure, call 911 immediately.
Call 911 or have someone take you to the closest emergency room right away if you have chest pain that lasts longer than five minutes and doesn't go away when you rest or take medication. Cardiac chest pain can be life-threatening. Chest pain can be a sign of a heart attack.
A feeling of chest pressure or heaviness is common, but some people may experience mild pain while other have sharp, more severe pain. Some heart attacks strike suddenly, but symptoms could also occur hours, days or weeks in advance.
Heart attack signs and symptoms in men and women: Chest pain or discomfort; Shortness of breath; Pain or discomfort in the jaw, neck, back, arm, or shoulder; Feeling nauseous, light-headed, or unusually tired.
Chest pain can stem from a heart problem, but other possible causes include a lung infection, muscle strain, a rib injury, or a panic attack. Some of these are serious conditions and need medical attention.
SMI warning signs
It can feel like an uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, or pain. Discomfort in other upper-body areas, such as one or both arms, the back, the neck, the jaw, or the stomach. Shortness of breath before or during chest discomfort. Breaking out in a cold sweat, or feeling nauseated or lightheaded.
Nurses and doctors are likely ordering an EKG or electrocardiogram for you, which will help us determine if you have an acute heart problem. You will also have blood work done, and if needed, you will be administered pain medicine. Sometimes, patients are also put on oxygen.
Acute chest pain, or sudden discomfort you haven't experienced before, always warrants emergency care. When in doubt, call 911. Don't research your symptoms online or call your doctor's office when you have such chest pain, Nanna says.
Chest pain is frightening and must be taken seriously. So know this: If you are having severe discomfort in the chest—especially if the chest pain is radiating to your neck, jaw or arms—and it's accompanied by shortness of breath, dizziness and sweating, call 911 immediately.
Noncardiac chest pain is defined as recurring pain in your chest — typically, behind your breast bone and near your heart — that is not related to your heart. In most people, noncardiac chest pain is actually related to a problem with their esophagus, most often gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
A: Not necessarily. While some heart attacks do feature classic symptoms like chest and arm pain, the idea that they all do is FALSE.
Physical trauma, costochondritis, and muscle strains are common causes of sternum pain. Conditions such as pneumonia, pleurisy and GERD can also cause pain in nearby tissue that people may mistake for sternum pain.
In general, though, anxiety chest pain may feel like: Tension, tightness, and pressure: You might experience a mild, constant tightness or a sudden, intense tightness in your chest. You may also feel like it's difficult to breathe or that your heart is beating out of your chest.
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.
Signs of a heart attack include:
- 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.
In this type of heart attack, blood flow through one of the coronary arteries was partially blocked, limiting the supply of oxygenated blood to the heart muscle. “If you were told you've had a mild heart attack, it probably means your heart didn't suffer much damage and still pumps normally,” Dr. Campbell says.