3 imperatives to transform health care in America. You're invited to watch it live

Free

E-newsletter

Subscribe to Housecall

Our weekly general interest
e-newsletter keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics.

Sign up now

Complications

By Mayo Clinic staff

The chest pain that can occur with angina can make doing some normal activities, such as walking, uncomfortable. However, the most dangerous complication to be concerned about with angina is a heart attack.

Common symptoms of a heart attack include:

  • Pressure, fullness or a squeezing pain in the center of your chest that lasts for more than a few minutes
  • Pain extending beyond your chest to your shoulder, arm, back, or even to your teeth and jaw
  • Increasing episodes of chest pain
  • Prolonged pain in the upper abdomen
  • Shortness of breath
  • Sweating
  • Impending sense of doom
  • Fainting
  • Nausea and vomiting

If you have any of these symptoms, seek emergency medical attention immediately.

References
  1. Angina. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Angina/Angina_All.html. Accessed March 14, 2011.
  2. Angina pectoris. American Heart Association. http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4472. Accessed March 14, 2011.
  3. ACC/AHA management of patients with unstable angina/non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction — Pocket guideline. American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association. http://www.americanheart.org/downloadable/heart/1194979355638UA-NSTEMI.Text.Final.pdf. Accessed March 14, 2011.
  4. Patient information sheet: Ranolazine. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/Cder/drug/InfoSheets/patient/ranolazine.pdf. Accessed March 14, 2011.
  5. L-arginine. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database. http://www.naturaldatabase.com. Accessed March 11, 2011.
  6. Ruel M, et al. Concomitant treatment with oral L-arginine improves the efficacy of surgical angiogenesis in patients with severe diffuse coronary artery disease: The endothelial modulation in angiogenic therapy randomized controlled trial. Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. 2008;135:762.
  7. L-carnitine. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database. http://www.naturaldatabase.com. Accessed March 11, 2011.
  8. Ferrari R, et al. Therapeutic effects of l-carnitine and propionyl-l-carnitine on cardiovascular diseases: A review. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 2004;1033:79.
DS00994 June 24, 2011

© 1998-2013 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER). All rights reserved. A single copy of these materials may be reprinted for noncommercial personal use only. "Mayo," "Mayo Clinic," "MayoClinic.com," "EmbodyHealth," "Enhance your life," and the triple-shield Mayo Clinic logo are trademarks of Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.

  • Reprints
  • Print
  • Share on:

  • Email

Advertisement


Text Size: smaller largerlarger