About Health

Heart Attack

A heart attack, also known as myocardial infarction, or coronary thrombosis, is when part of the heart muscle dies because it has been starved of oxygen. It usually occurs when a blood clot forms in one of the coronary arteries (the blood vessels which lead to the heart muscle) blocking the blood supply to the heart.

The common symptoms of a heart attack are:

Crushing central chest pain, or mild chest discomfort
Shortness of breath
Clammy, sweaty, and grey complexion
Dizziness
Nausea and vomiting
Restlessness
Coughing
A general feeling of being unwell
A frightening sense that you’re about to die

The pain that you experience when having a heart attack often starts in your chest and then travels to your neck, jaw, ears, arms and wrists. Sometimes, it travels between the shoulder blades, back or to the abdomen.

The pain can last from five minutes to several hours and may be constant or may come and go. Sometimes, angina can be mistaken for a heart attack because the signs are similar. However, unlike a heart attack, angina will usually disappear within 15-20 minutes of resting, and/or taking medication.

However, some people do not feel any pain during a heart attack. This is known as a 'silent' heart attack and tends to affect people with diabetes, or those who are over 75 years of age. Some evidence suggests that up to 20% of mild heart attacks go undiagnosed. This means that some people, because of previous undiagnosed attacks, may be suffering progressive damage to the heart muscle. The factors that increase the risk of a heart attack include:

Increasing age (men over 45 years of age, and women who are over 55 years of age)
Smoking
Being overweight, or obese
High blood pressure
High blood cholesterol level
A diet high in saturated fats (animal fats)
Diabetes
A family history of heart disease, and
Lack of regular exercise

The risk of a heart attack is also increased if you have: