How to know it’s time to see a cardiologist. 7 atypical symptoms

Medicīnas doktore, pediatre, uztura speciāliste, UniProf Academy of Physicians līdzdibinātāja

What symptoms indicate that it is time to see a cardiologist?

Discomfort behind the sternum – one of the most common complaints with which patients go to the doctor. This implies not only pain, but also various unpleasant sensations (freezing and interruptions in the work of the heart), which are accompanied by shortness of breath, increased blood pressure, increased pulse rate.

The appearance of pain in the heart is characteristic of angina pectoris, heart attack, aortic aneurysm and other heart pathologies. Thus, with angina pectoris there are severe pains, burning and tightness in the chest. Such symptoms more often occur with emotional or physical overstrain and last no more than 15 minutes.

In infarction, the pain is more pronounced, lasts more than 15 minutes, may be accompanied by nausea and weakness. In some cases, heart attack is not accompanied by pain symptoms, for example, in diabetes mellitus. With aortic aneurysm there is a very strong pain, which patients describe as tearing, burning. It is difficult to determine its localization, it can go to the neck, abdomen, back, arms, legs. All these symptoms require urgent medical attention.

About how to distinguish chest pain from heart pain, told in the material below.

However, heart problems are not always manifested by severe pain behind the sternum. Often unexpected symptoms tell about them.

Cough

We are accustomed to attribute coughing to the symptoms of respiratory diseases. But it can also indicate heart problems. If the cough is not cured with medication, it may be a sign of developing heart failure. Such a cough occurs more often at night, may be accompanied by streaks of blood in the sputum. Abrupt cough, which is accompanied by frothy sputum, is a sign of asthmatic variant of myocardial infarction.

Edema

In addition to diseases of the kidneys and endocrine system, edema accompanies heart disease, when the organ can not cope with its function. In this case, blood stasis develops. Its liquid part passes through the microholes of the walls of venous vessels, which leads to the appearance of edema.

At first, swellings appear on the legs. They intensify when the disease begins to progress. Gradually spread to other parts of the body and organs. With a severe degree of heart failure, fluid accumulates in the pleural (chest area) and abdominal cavities.

Heartburn, abdominal pain

In most cases, these symptoms are characteristic of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. But sometimes they can indicate the development of myocardial infarction. Abdominal pain, heartburn more often occur with an infarction that develops on the diaphragmatic surface of the heart. This condition can be accompanied by diarrhea, nausea and even vomiting.

Snoring

Among the main symptoms of obstructive apnea syndrome is characterized by the occurrence of breathing stops during sleep, which alternates with loud snoring. In severe forms of the syndrome, such stops can be several hundred, which leads to oxygen deprivation, and this increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes, hypertension.

Weakness

A few hours before a heart attack, a sudden unreasonably severe weakness may appear. Such a symptom even with minimal physical exertion is characteristic of chronic heart failure.

Dyspnea

This symptom accompanies most heart disease. Dyspnea occurs because the heart is unable to perform its full work. The contractility of the heart muscle deteriorates, the pressure in the pulmonary arteries rises, small vessels spasm and gas exchange is impaired. The signal about the lack of oxygen goes to the respiratory center, and this state is compensated by deep inhalations and exhalations.

Dyspnea is one of the early signs of heart failure. At first it appears during physical exertion, over time – even at rest. In severe heart failure, shortness of breath persists even at night. A person wakes up from the fact that he begins to suffocate, at the same time he may experience fear of death. This phenomenon is called cardiac asthma. The danger lies in the fact that such attacks can develop pulmonary edema, which without emergency medical care leads to a fatal outcome.

Sweating

Sweating profusely during exercise or in hot weather is normal. It is necessary to worry about the sudden appearance of sweat, which is not associated with the above reasons. This symptom may indicate the development of a heart attack. Most often it is a sticky cold sweat. In this case, you should immediately seek medical help.

If one or more of the above symptoms are detected, it is necessary to consult a doctor to exclude heart and vascular diseases.

About what foods are useful for heart health, read in our article.