What is considered a silent heart attack?
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.
You can have a heart attack and not even know it. A silent heart attack, known as a silent myocardial infarction (SMI), account for 45% of heart attacks and strike men more than women.
Shortness of breath can occur with or without chest pain, and it's a common sign of a silent heart attack. You may also feel dizzy or lightheaded — and it's possible you could faint. Though this can happen to both men and women, it's more common for women to experience shortness of breath.
Normally, silent heart attacks are found long after the heart attack is over. Treatment will mostly involve taking medicines. These medicines help improve blood flow to your heart, prevent clotting, and reduce the risks of having another heart attack.
- Physical exam.
- Blood tests.
- Electrocardiogram (ECG/EKG).
- Coronary angiography.
- CT scan.
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
- Exercise stress test.
- Nuclear stress test.
The duration of a silent heart attack can vary. If symptoms do present, a person should seek medical attention immediately. When blood flow to the heart stops for around 15 minutes, the heart can become damaged. After about 30 minutes, the damage is irreversible.
The people who are most vulnerable to silent heart attacks fall into one of three categories: women, people with diabetes and people who are elderly. "The reason these groups are most at risk is because they don't present with the tell-tale symptom of severe, pounding chest pain," Dr. Kazziha says.
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.
“There isn't that 'elephant on the chest' sensation that is associated with a heart attack, so they write it off as something else.” Silent heart attacks may not cause pain, but they are still as serious. In fact, people who suffer silent heart attacks are more likely to die of heart disease.
Dr. Xu says the majority of patients experience somewhat typical symptoms, such as radiating chest pain, heaviness or discomfort, heart palpitations, cold sweats, and shortness of breath.
Can you have a silent heart attack and not know it?
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.
Also called silent ischemia or a silent myocardial infarction, it may present with minimal, unrecognized or no symptoms at all. And it is more common than one might expect, said Dr.
Heart attack recovery takes anywhere from two weeks to three months. During this time, it's important to begin adopting lifestyle changes that can lower your risk of a future heart attack. These include adding more exercise to your day, following a heart-healthy diet and quitting smoking.
The two tests that have gained significant popularity in this regard are the Coronary Artery Calcium Score (CAC score) and Lp(a) measurement.
Silent heart attacks—those that occur but are not detected—are a cause of increased risk for strokes, especially strokes of unknown origin that can baffle healthcare providers, according to an NIA-led study.
Doctors can use various blood tests to determine whether a person has experienced a heart attack. If a doctor suspects a person has had a heart attack, they will typically take a blood sample and test for cardiac markers that may indicate a heart attack.
An ECG can show evidence of a previous heart attack or one that's currently happening. The patterns on the ECG may help determine which part of the heart has been damaged, as well as the extent of the damage. Blood and oxygen supply to the heart.
EKG and a past heart attack: how far back can an EKG detect a heart attack? An EKG can reveal if you had a heart attack months or years ago. Heart attacks cause significant symptoms that need immediate medical attention. However, in 45% of cases, patients don't detect any abnormality with their hearts.
Silent heart attacks occur more commonly in men than in women; however, silent heart attacks are more often fatal for women. In addition, following a silent heart attack, the risk of dying due to heart disease is three times higher than for someone with a normal ECG, and the overall risk of death rises to 34 percent.
The most common symptoms of a heart attack include: chest pain (angina) — pressure or tightness in the chest and arms that may spread to the jaw, neck or back. suddenly feeling dizzy, faint, light-headed or anxious.
What are symptoms of mini heart attacks?
- pressure-like pain in the chest that lasts more than 10 minutes.
- pain that radiates to either arm, neck, or jaw.
- shortness of breath.
- nausea and vomiting.
- fainting.
- fatigue.
- sweating.
Common heart attack symptoms include: Chest pain that may feel like pressure, tightness, pain, squeezing or aching. Pain or discomfort that spreads to the shoulder, arm, back, neck, jaw, teeth or sometimes the upper belly. Cold sweat.
Nearly 80 percent of heart attacks in the United States go undiagnosed, according to the first nationwide study of its kind.
It could be a lung disorder, such as a blood clot to the lungs, known as a pulmonary embolism. Additionally, other causes of chest discomfort include spasm of the esophagus, diseases of the aorta, gastroesophageal reflux disease, musculoskeletal pain, fast heart rhythm abnormalities and costochondritis.
Official answer. You can check for heart disease at home by measuring your pulse rate and your blood pressure if you have a blood pressure monitor. You can also monitor yourself for symptoms of heart disease, such as: Chest pain, pressure, discomfort, or tightness.
How long can a heart attack last? Heart attack symptoms typically persist for longer than a few minutes. They may go away and come back again, or they may occur intermittently over several hours .
An electrocardiogram (EKG) is the most common initial test and may be given within minutes of your arrival at the hospital. An EKG will check whether you may be having a heart attack. Based on the results of the EKG, your doctor may then order more tests, ask you about your medical history, and do a physical exam.
Electrocardiogram. An electrocardiogram (ECG) is an important test in suspected heart attacks. It should be done within 10 minutes of being admitted to hospital. An ECG measures the electrical activity of your heart.
Troponin blood test - troponin is a protein which is released into the blood stream when the heart muscle is damaged. The troponin level provides a quick and accurate measure of any heart muscle damage. It's used to help in the assessment following suspected heart attack.
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.
Can you have heart attack and not know it?
People often don't learn that they had a heart attack until they have an electrocardiogram (ECG) or a stress test and the doctor notices signs consistent with heart damage. As in traditional symptomatic heart attacks, a silent heart attack involves a blockage of blood flow to the heart.
Silent Myocardial Infarction (SMI).
Also called a “silent heart attack”, an SMI has symptoms that are so mild and brief that you may not even know you're having a heart attack.
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.
And it is more common than one might expect, said Dr. Michael Kontos, a cardiologist with VCU Health Pauley Heart Center in Richmond, Virginia. Of the estimated 805,000 heart attacks each year in the U.S., a projected 170,000 of them are silent heart attacks, according to statistics from the American Heart Association.
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.
Pulmonary Embolism (blood clot in the lung)
Some forms of chest pain may originate from your lungs, rather than your heart. One lung problem, pulmonary embolism, can mimic a heart attack and is equally serious. A pulmonary embolism is a blood clot in an artery in the lungs.
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.
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.