Common causes of chest pain
All too often, the mention of chest pain conjures up images of a heart attack,
but there are plenty of other diseases and conditions that can trigger
this symptom. Some of them—like that chest muscle you pulled raking
leaves last fall—are more annoying than serious. But others can be far
more serious.
naijaadvance.com.ng spoke to three leading cardiologists
across the country, and all of them reiterated one thing: If you’re
having chest pain, and you’re not 100% sure what’s causing it, either
call your doctor or call 911.
“I know of one person who died and the last thing in their search bar was ‘heart attack symptoms,’” says Sharonne Hayes, a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
Christine Jellis, MD, PhD, a cardiologist at
Cleveland Clinic, seconds that. “As a physician, I would much rather let
someone know that it’s nothing to worry about than have someone [come
to us] too late and has permanent damage,” Dr. Jellis says.
Here are seven conditions that can cause chest pain—and what everyone should know about to treat them.
Heartburn
You
might be wondering how someone could mistake the symptoms of acid reflux
for a heart attack, but there’s a reason why it’s called
heartburn, after all.
Gastroesophageal reflux occurs when a person’s
stomach contents—including the gastric acids that help break down
food—back up into the esophagus, the tube that connects the throat and
stomach. Stomach acid is highly acidic, hence, the burning sensation
behind your breastbone; on the pH scale, it scores about a 2,
falling somewhere between battery acid and vinegar. (Our stomachs are
lined with protective membranes that shield it from the corrosive
effects of acid, while our esophagus does not.)
The occasional reflux is fairly common and
probably nothing to worry about, but if you’re experiencing it twice a
week or more, you may have gastroesophageal reflux disease (
GERD). Left untreated over time, GERD can cause
asthma, chest congestion, and a condition called
Barrett’s esophagus, which may increase your chances of developing a rare type of cancer.
Muscle strain
Weekend
warriors, take note: If you haven’t lifted anything heavier than a
MacBook for more than a few years, you might want to rethink that
CrossFit class you signed up for.
It’s possible for someone to mistake a strained
chest muscle for something more serious, like a heart attack, says Dr.
Jellis. “I had a patient who came in with chest pain and he was worried
he was having a heart attack,” she says. “After taking his history, I
learned he had moved [to a new house] and hadn’t lifted heavy furniture
in years. But he did the right thing, coming in.”
Doctors don’t expect patients to be able to tell
the difference between a heart attack and a pulled chest muscle, she
says, but a good rule of thumb is that if you can press on the wall of
the chest and it feels even more painful, it’s more likely to be a
musculoskeletal injury than a problem with your ticker.
Costochondritis
An
estimated 13% to 36% of adults who show up to the emergency room or
their doctor’s office with acute chest pain are diagnosed with
costochondritis, or inflammation where a rib bone meets up with the cartilage, according to a 2009 review in the journal
American Family Physician.
Although doctors can’t always pinpoint what triggered the condition,
the culprits can range from viral infections to chest injuries.
Typically, people feel a type of pressure on their chest wall
and—similar to a strained muscle—a tenderness when they press on the
area.
In this case, a doctor will probably start by
taking your medical history and doing a physical exam. “A physician is
going to want to rule out cardiac and other serious issues first,” says
Dr. Jellis. “It’ll most likely be a diagnosis by exclusion.” If you do
have costochondritis, the pain typically goes away in a few days or
weeks; taking over-the-counter painkillers can help.
Shingles
The
virus that causes chickenpox lingers in your body long after the spots
have faded. In fact, varicella-zoster can reactivate in adulthood
(usually in people older than 50) as a disease called shingles. The
first symptoms include itching and burning skin. If the area over the
chest is affected, someone might mistake this new pain for a heart
attack or other cardiac issue, says Salman Arain, MD, an interventional
cardiologist with McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas
Health Science Center at Houston and the Memorial Hermann Heart &
Vascular Institute-Texas Medical Center. A few days later, however, the
telltale rash can appear, followed by blisters.
If you think you have shingles, you should call
your doctor ASAP. Antiviral medications can lessen the pain and shorten
the duration of the symptoms, but only if you take them within 72 hours
of the rash appearing. If it’s too late to take antivirals, your doctor
can prescribe a prescription painkiller.
Pericarditis
If
you’ve been battling a viral infection for the last few days, then
suddenly wake up to a sharp, stabbing pain in your chest, you may have
developed pericarditis, an inflammation in the layers of tissue that surround our heart, says Dr. Arain.
Respiratory infections are often to blame, though other culprits include autoimmune disorders like
lupus and
rheumatoid arthritis. Although pericarditis is usually benign, says Dr. Arain, it can really impact your quality of life.
Your doctor may diagnose your condition after
ordering a CT scan, EKG, or chest x-ray. Chances are, however, your
pericarditis will clear up in a few days or weeks simply by resting or
taking over-the-counter pain medicine like ibuprofen, which also helps
quell inflammation.
Pancreatitis
Just
because a person’s chest pain isn’t heart attack-related doesn’t mean
that it isn’t dangerous. One example: acute pancreatitis—the sudden
inflammation of the pancreas, which is located just behind the stomach.
“Intense abdominal pain can radiate up to the chest,” says Dr. Arain.
“And the pain from pancreatitis is usually a deep-seated, intense pain.”
Oftentimes, pancreatitis occurs when
gallstones (usually
made of hardened cholesterol) trigger inflammation in the
pancreas—something that’s more likely to occur in women than men. If you
think you have pancreatitis, you should get medical attention right
away; you’ll probably have to stay in the hospital for a few days to get
antibiotics, IV fluids, and pain medication. Your doctor will also want
to do blood work and order other tests, like a CT scan or abdominal
ultrasound.
Coronary artery disease
Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a type of heart disease
caused by a buildup of plaque in the arteries that supply blood to the
heart. Over time, cholesterol deposits lodge themselves in the walls of
these arteries, which can blocks off blood flow and cause chest pain.
While CAD can cause a sudden heart attack, it can also contribute to heart failure
and arrhythmias. If you do receive a coronary artery disease diagnosis,
your doctor may want to start you on statins, insert a stent into one
of the arteries, or schedule you for bypass surgery.
Which brings us back to the number one rule
cardiologists gave us: If you’re experiencing chest pain, it’s important
to get it checked out, stat.
“One of the biggest public health messages has
been to get people to take action when they have chest pain,” says Dr.
Hayes. “And we still have people who ignore their pain, who feel chest
pain but who don’t think heart attack… I understand being worried about,
what if the ambulance shows up in my driveway and I come back and it
was just indigestion? And that’s why I specifically say, ‘There have
been enough people who have died at home thinking it was indigestion and
it was really a heart attack.’ If it’s a new symptom and you’ve never
had it before, or the pain is coming or going or getting worse, call
911—don’t call your girlfriend or your husband or drive yourself. Just
call.”
Panic attack
Having
a panic attack can certainly feel like a heart attack; people often
believe they're dying when they are having one. In addition to chest
pain, symptoms can include a pounding heart, sweating, shaking, nausea,
dizziness, and a feeling of going crazy.
Panic attacks tend to crop up suddenly with no
warning. You may be prone to them if you have a family member with a
history of panic attacks, if you're dealing with major life changes and
ongoing stress (such as a serious illness of a loved one), or if you
recently survived a traumatic event (such as a robbery or car
accident).
If you think you've experienced a panic attack,
it's smart to visit your primary care doctor. Your doc may refer you to a
psychologist or psychiatrist.
GET YOUR POST JAMB PAST QUESTION @ NAIJAADVANCE
Copyright Warning: Contents on this website may not be republished, reproduced, redistributed either in whole or in part without due permission or acknowledgement. All contents are protected by DMCA.
The content on this site is posted with good intentions. If you own this content & believe your copyright was violated or infringed, make sure you contact us at [email protected] to file a complaint & actions will be taken immediately.
Don’t Attend to Any Call from this WEBSITES Pertaining to any Job or Scholarship Offer Requiring Money.
No comments:
Post a comment