Just had a heart attack

Get well soon. One of the biggest causes of death, especially for males is being too stubborn or too scared to get things checked out. Me included. Have a speedy recovery!

It is just so casually putted that the level of seriousness associated with a heart attack makes it absurdly to be putted this way. Where I am from, in Romania, a heart attack is basically a death sentence. Regarding this, I have read an article recently[1] which stated that in Romania only 3% percent survive if they have a heart attack outside of a hospital.

[1] http://www.romanialibera.ro/societate/sanatate/doar-3--din-c...

Doctor here. The 'typical' signs of a heart attack are chest pain usually described as dull, heavy or tight, with radiation to the arm(s) and neck. The patient often also complains of diaphoresis (sweating) , shortness of breath and perhaps weakness.

'Typical' signs do not present in everyone: in particular diabetics are at increased risk of having 'silent' heart attacks, And chest pain that is not typical may also be a heart attack.

An ECG can rapidly demonstrate that a patient is having a heart attack or as we call them myocardial infarcts, and excellent intervention is often possible.

If the above condition/pain is experienced and there is not a clear ECG picture of a heart attack troponin levels are taken at 6 hrs, an increase f which will demonstrate that there was cardiac specific muscle damage.

Without wanting to alarm anyone, there is in the US 250,000 sudden cardiac deaths a year, almost all from a coronary artery called the left main blocking: this vessel supplies a huge percentage of the heart muscle and when it blocks there is no warning and the heart doesn't have enough fuel to keep pumping.. These patients unfortunately almost all dead on arrival. There is very little that can be done to predict this as their first episode of chest pain usually results in death within minutes, and there are rarely indications that the patient is at risk of such a problem.

Here's the thing - people experiencing a heart attack can have any combination, or none of the symptoms. So here's some of the symptoms, bearing in mind that they may or may not apply to any given situation.

Chest Pain The first and most obvious sign is chest pain. It may be radiating down your left side (jaw/arm). It is generally described as a crushing pain. This symptom is less likely to occur for women or people with diabetes. If the chest pain is not relieved by resting (i.e. sitting down), it points towards a heart attack.

Shortness of Breath As a body attempts to bring more oxygen into the body faster (because your heart isnt perfusing efficiently anymore), breathing will become faster and more shallow.

Pulse - Rapid, Weak You should take your pulse a few times a year to get a baseline of what it's normally like. During a heart attack, it can become faster and weaker. However, this is relative - your pulse may normally be weak. This is why it is important to have a baseline.

Nausea, Dizzyness, Sweating, Weakness These physical symptoms by themselves are usually not a concern (they happen with many sorts of illness really) but in combination with the above can be a warning sign.

In any discussion about heart attacks, it's important for you to understand the risk factors: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heart-attack/b...

If you're high risk and are suffering from the above symptoms, its always advisable to err on the side of caution and call the emergency services. In fact, if you're at all worried, just call.

There are some things you can do to help yourself during a heart attack: 1) Call emergency services. 2) Make sure emergency services can access you, especially if you're on your own. Unlock door, etc. 3) Half sitting position. Place your back up against a wall and sit with your knees raised. 4) Take an aspirin. This will thin your blood and relieve pressure on your heart. 5) Try control your breathing. 6) Try not to worry (yeah, I know, this is a hard one).

Source: EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) with voluntary ambulance services.

Thanks for your response. I was always curious about something. My father inlaw was admitted a few years ago for bypass surgery. Upon inspection, they found (I'm doing this from memory so apologies if I get some of the numbers wrong) that 4 of his arteries were partially blocked, some up to 85%. In fact, his body produced a natural bypass on it's own because one artery was so clogged up (it literally created new connections to bypass the clog albeit much smaller then the original)!

My question is why can't we detect this high level of blockage much earlier (as in with a physical). Are the tests too intrusive or too expensive to recommend that the test(s) be performed periodically (eg maybe every 5 years after 30 or 40?)

Thanks!