What is Heart Attack?
In medical terminology myocardial infarction (MI) or commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the heart (coronary artery), causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom of heart attack is chest pain or discomfort which may travel into the shoulder, arm, back, neck or jaw. Often it occurs in the center or left side of the chest and lasts for more than a few minutes. The discomfort may occasionally feel like heartburn. Other symptoms may include shortness of breath, nausea, feeling faint, a cold sweat or feeling tired. About 30% of people have atypical symptoms. Women more often present without chest pain and instead have neck pain, arm pain or feel tired. Among those over 75 years old, about 5% have had an MI with little or no history of symptoms. An MI may cause heart failure, an irregular heartbeat cardiac arrest.
What are causes of heart attack?
Risk factors include high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes, lack of exercise, obesity, high blood cholesterol, poor diet and excessive alcohol intake. Many risk factors of myocardial infarction are shared with coronary artery disease, the primary cause of myocardial infarction, with other risk factors including male sex, low levels of physical activity, a past family history, obesity, and alcohol use. Risk factors for myocardial disease are often included in risk factor stratification scores, such as the Framingham Risk Score. At any given age, men are more at risk than women for the development of cardiovascular disease. High levels of blood cholesterol are a known risk factor, particularly high low-density lipoprotein, low high-density lipoprotein, and high triglycerides.
Many risk factors for myocardial infarction are potentially modifiable, with the most important being tobacco smoking (including secondhand smoke). Smoking appears to be the cause of about 36% and obesity the cause of 20% of coronary artery disease. Lack of physical activity has been linked to 7–12% of cases. Less common causes include stress-related causes such as job stress, which accounts for about 3% of cases, and chronic high stress levels.
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What are the symptoms of heart attack?
The major symptoms of a heart attack are:
Chest pain or discomfort: 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.
Pain or discomfort in the jaw, neck, or back.
Pain or discomfort in one or both arms or shoulders.
Shortness of breath: This often comes along with chest discomfort, but shortness of breath also can happen before chest discomfort.
What can I do to recover after a heart attack?
If you’ve had a heart attack, your heart may be damaged. This could affect your heart’s rhythm and its ability to pump blood to the rest of the body. You may also be at risk for another heart attack or conditions such as stroke, kidney disorders, and Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD).
You can lower your chances of having future health problems following a heart attack with these steps:
Physical activity—Talk with your health care team about the things you do each day in your life and work. Your doctor may want you to limit work, travel, or sexual activity for some time after a heart attack.
Lifestyle changes—Eating a healthier diet, increasing physical activity, quitting smoking, and managing stress—in addition to taking prescribed medicines—can help improve your heart health and quality of life. Ask your health care team about attending a program called cardiac rehabilitation to help you make these lifestyle changes.
Cardiac rehabilitation — It is an important program for anyone recovering from a heart attack, heart failure, or other heart problem that required surgery or medical care. Cardiac rehab is a supervised program that includes
Physical activity
Education about healthy living, including healthy eating, taking medicine as prescribed, and ways to help you quit smoking
Counseling to find ways to relieve stress and improve mental health.
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