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Complications
By Mayo Clinic staffThe 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 signs and 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
- Angina. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/angina/. Accessed May 18, 2013.
- Papadakis MA, et al. Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment 2013. 52nd ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2013. http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=1. Accessed May 18, 2013.
- Stock EO, et al. Cardiovascular disease in women. Current Problems in Cardiology. 2012;37:450-526.
- Angina in Women Can Be Different Than Men. American Heart Association. http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HeartAttack/WarningSignsofaHeartAttack/Angina-in-Women-Can-Be-Different-Than-Men_UCM_448902_Article.jsp. Accessed May 18, 2013.
- Kannam JP, et al. Overview of the care of patients with stable ischemic heart disease. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed May 18, 2013.
- Meisel JL, et al. Differential diagnosis of chest pain in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed May 18, 2013.
- Jneid H, et al. 2012 ACCF/AHA focused update of the guideline for the management of patients with unstable angina/Non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (updating the 2007 guideline and replacing the 2011 focused update): A report of the American College of Cardiology Foundation/American Heart Association Task Force on practice guidelines. Circulation. 2012;126:875.
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