Heart Attack In Man

Preventing A Heart Attack

Some of the risk factors associated with heart attacks are not reversible, such as sex and genetic risk of heart disease.

However, a person can lower their risk of a heart attack by focusing on lifestyle changes, such as:

• Reducing or limiting alcohol intake: Low-to-moderate intake of may have some benefits for heart health. However, excessive drinking can damage the heart.
• Regularly exercising: Regular reduces blood pressure and the risk of death from a heart attack.
• Adopting a Mediterranean diet: that people who consume Mediterranean diets may have better heart health.
• Stopping smoking: The note that the risk of heart problems decrease soon after people quit smoking. This risk continues to decline over time.
• Losing weight:

What Does A Mini Heart Attack Feel Like

You must have often heard of other people having something called a mini heart attack or mild heart attack. Although there is no such term as a mini heart attack in the medical dictionary, it can be compared with a mild heart attack or a silent heart attack.

Mild heart attack

• You get a mild heart attack when there is a partial block in your coronary artery that causes mild signs and symptoms of a heart attack.
• If your doctor tells you that you have had a mild heart attack, it probably means your heart is not damaged much and is working properly.

Silent heart attack

• Sometimes, you may not even know that you have suffered a heart attack. Such a heart attack is usually said to be a silent heart attack. Your doctor accidentally may discover a past attack on your routine ECG when you go for your regular check-up.
• While in other instances, a heart problem or another heart attack could make the doctor suspect that you may have had a silent heart attack. This may similarly show up in your ECG when you visit your doctor for a different heart problem.
• Such a heart attack might have occurred months or years before without you even knowing about it.
• A silent heart attack is usually lacking the typical signs and symptoms of a heart attack, such as shortness of breath. Symptoms of a heart attack like mild pain in the throat or chest can be confused with hyperacidity, indigestion, and heartburn.

How Does Heart Disease Affect Men

• Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men in the United States, killing 382,776 men in 2020thats about 1 in every 4 male deaths.1
• Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men of most racial and ethnic groups in the United States, including African Americans, American Indians or Alaska Natives, Hispanics, and whites. For Asian American or Pacific Islander men, heart disease is second only to cancer.2
• About 1 in 13 white men and 1 in 14 black men have coronary heart disease. About 1 in 17 Hispanic men have coronary heart disease.3
• Half of the men who die suddenly of coronary heart disease had no previous symptoms.4 Even if you have no symptoms, you may still be at risk for heart disease.

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What Do These Early Symptoms Typically Look Like

Dr. Xu says the majority of patients experience somewhat typical symptoms, such as radiating chest pain, heaviness or discomfort, heart palpitations, cold sweats, and shortness of breath. Others — women more so than men — will experience some atypical symptoms as well, which may include fatigue, a general sense of unease, vague discomfort, back or abdominal pain and declining stamina. Both types of symptoms can be experienced months before an actual heart attack occurs.

What’s Happening In Guys Under 40

Sorry, we should have led with the good news: If youre a middle-aged or older guy, the chances of your having a heart attack are as low as theyve been in decades. Even in much older peoplethe 65-plus crowdtheres been a nearly 40 percent drop in heart-attack hospitalizations in the past 20 years. But according to a study presented at the American College of Cardiology meeting last spring, people whove yet to hit the big four-oh are bucking that trend, experiencing higher heart-attack rates than ever.

The number of victims in their 20s and 30s has been rising over the past two decades, and scientists have even seen atherosclerosis, the arterial damage and blockages that cause serious heart events, in the arteries of men in their teens and 20s. Whats driving the scary stats? Experts have four theories:

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What Should I Do If I Think Im Having A Heart Attack

The first thing you must do is dial 999 immediately for an ambulance. Dont worry if youre not completely sure whether your symptoms are a heart attack, its really important that you seek medical attention regardless as quickly as possible.

Next, you should:

• take a 300mg aspirin if you have one within arms reach
• stay calm and wait for the paramedics.

People often dismiss that theyre having a heart attack and will delay seeking medical attention. If youre with someone whos experiencing heart attack symptoms but theyre putting off or refusing to call an ambulance, its really important that you call one for them.

Common Signs Of Heart Attack And Stroke

A heart attack occurs when heart disease has reached the point where blood stops flowing to the muscle of the heart. The most common sign of heart attack in men is chest discomfort that includes squeezing, pressure, or pain. It used to be thought that only chest pain was a sign of heart attack, but its possible to have discomfort that doesnt register as painful. This discomfort may also be present in your arms, back, neck, abdomen, or jaw.

During a heart attack, you may have:

• shortness of breath
• profuse sweating for no apparent reason
• nausea
• lightheadedness

Symptoms of a stroke include numbness or weakness that only happens on one side of your body. The numbness may occur in your face, arms, or legs. Other symptoms of stroke include:

• confusion, difficulty speaking, or trouble comprehending others
• imbalance or loss of coordination
• changes in vision
• intense headache

Many of these changes occur suddenly and without warning. Call 911 immediately if you experience these symptoms.

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How Can I Prevent A Heart Attack Or Cardiac Arrest

The goal of heart attack and cardiac arrest prevention is to minimize the buildup of plaque in your arteries, which can lead toà a condition calledà atherosclerosis. If you can keep blood flowing smoothly through your body, your risks of having problems are much lower.

Plaque builds up gradually. The good news is that you don’t have to worry that a single order of fettuccine Alfredo will suddenly plug up your arteries. The bad news is that decades later, your arteries may still show some ill effects of all that junk you ate in high school and college. Almost no one has significant coronary artery disease at the end of college, although the process starts in childhood. It accelerates markedly around age 50 to 60.

So how do you reduce the build-up of plaque? You probably already know the answer. It’s all the stuff you should be doing . You can reduce the build-up if you do the following:

• Exercise for at least half an hour most days of the week.
• Eat right — preferably a diet low in unhealthy fats and high in fruits and vegetables.
• Reduce emotional stress.

There are other medical conditions that increase your risk of heart attacksà – such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol. So if you have any of these, you need to control them with lifestyle changes or medication. Some men benefit from taking daily low doses of aspirin, but you should always check with your doctor first.

Why Heart Disease Goes Undiagnosed In Women

Australian women are more likely to die from heart disease than breast cancer. This is partly because heart disease is often not recognised in women. The reasons for this include:

• Women often develop symptoms of heart disease at a much later stage in the illness than men.
• Symptoms can be more vague or non-specific in women.
• Women are less likely to seek help quickly.
• Some diagnostic tests for heart disease are less accurate in women than in men.
• Some health professionals may be less likely to check for heart disease in women.

There is also less community awareness of the risk of heart disease in females. Many Australian women mistakenly assume that heart disease mostly affects middle-aged men, which is not the case.

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What’s The Difference Between Angina And A Heart Attack

Angina is pain felt in your chest often caused by coronary heart disease. As the symptoms of angina are similar to a heart attack, its important to know how to distinguish between the two. If you havent been diagnosed with angina and you start experiencing chest pain that feels similar to the symptoms of a heart attack, phone 999 immediately.If you have angina and you start experiencing chest pain symptoms similar to a heart attack:

• sit down and rest
• use your glyceryl trinitrate spray that youve been prescribed
• if the pain still persists after a few minutes, take another dose of your spray
• if the pain doesnt go away a few minutes after your second dose, dial 999 immediately.

When Should I See A Doctor

Its important not to ignore symptoms and wait until they become severe. If you have a concern, talk to your doctor. If heart disease is caught early, there are many lifestyle changes you can make to reduce your risk of further problems: eat a healthy diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables, get regular exercise , maintain a healthy weight, drink alcohol in moderation , and dont smoke.

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What Do I Do If Im Having A Heart Attack

If you experience any of these signs or symptoms:

• Dial 911 immediately, follow the operators instructions and get to a hospital right away.
• Dont drive yourself to the hospital.
• Try to stay as calm as possible and take deep, slow breaths while you wait for the emergency responders.

Women who think theyre healthy often misread the symptoms of a heart attack because they dont think it could happen to them. Thats why its crucial to learn about heart attack, know your numbers and live heart-healthy.

Written by American Heart Association editorial staff and reviewed by science and medicine advisers. See our editorial policies and staff.

Sign Of Potential Heart Attack: Your Erection Falters

Erections occur when more blood flows into your penis, making it firm and hard. But if those blood vessels are damaged, blood flows less freely, meaning youre less likely to get an erection, or maintain an erection, when aroused. Thats a main cause of erectile dysfunction.

As Segal explains, if your blood vessels down there are damaged, theres a good chance the ones near your heart could be damaged as well.

A major cause of this blood vessel damage is plaque buildup. When that occurs in the vessels to your heart, you could be at risk of a heart attack, he says.

Having a one-time performance problem isnt likely a big dealit could just mean youre tired or stressed. But if the issue persists after a few sessions in the sack, it could be a sign of something more serious.

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Heart Attack Symptoms: Are They Different Between Men And Women

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While chest pain and shortness of breath have long been the telltale signs of a heart attack, these symptoms have been based on years of clinical research looking at what men experience.

But women have a higher risk of dying from a heart attack than men do. In many cases, thats because they dont realize they are having a heart attack and take too long to get help.

More recent studies have indicated that fewer women experience chest pain, or at least to the degree of pain or discomfort than men do.

More simply put: Women are less likely to have the typical heart attack seen in the movies.

Women could certainly experience chest pain, but they should also be on the lookout for less obvious symptoms, such as nausea, indigestion, and palpitations in addition to shortness of breath and back pain.

Nearly half of women in one study had no chest pain at all during their heart attack. Fatigue and shortness of breath were the most common symptoms.

Both women and men may have typical symptoms of heart attack, including chest pain or pressure often radiating to the shoulders, arms, neck or jaw and shortness of breath. These symptoms are usually made worse with exertion or stress, said Marcus St. John, M.D., interventional cardiologist, Baptist Cardiac & Vascular Institute. There are, however, several atypical symptoms of a heart attack and these tend to be more common in women.

What Are The Tests To Diagnose A Heart Attack

ECG: An ECG is one of the most common tests. It allows a doctor to get a sense of how severe your heart attack was and which part of your heart has been damaged.

Blood tests: Presence/level of various enzymes in your blood like creatine phosphokinase , CPK-MB and troponin can indicate the extent of damage to your cardiac muscle.

Echocardiography: This test is done during and after the heart attack to check if the heart attack has damaged your heart valves and determine the pumping capacity of your heart.

Cardiac catheterization: You may be asked to go urgently for angiography, which is done with the help of a surgical procedure known as cardiac catheterization. This will let the cardiac surgeon know the location of the block in the coronary artery to help him decide the most appropriate treatment for your heart attack.

• Heparin

If medications fail to improve the signs and symptoms of heart attack, either of the following cardiac surgeries will be planned by the cardiac surgeon.

Angioplasty: A procedure to open the narrowed or blocked arteries supplying blood to the heart. This can be done immediately after angiography on the same day.

: A procedure in which the surgeon takes blood vessels taken from another area of your body and uses them to bypass the blocked/narrowed arteries to enable re-supply of blood to the affected areas of the heart. This surgery is usually planned a few days after a heart attack.

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What Happens When You Have A Heart Attack

A heart attack occurs when the blood vessel that supplies blood to your heart gets blocked partially or completely. The lack of blood supply means the heart does not get enough oxygen or nutrients. When you experience a heart attack, the signs and symptoms include:

• Chest discomfort in the form of pressure, heaviness, tightness, squeezing, or pain
• Chest pain that goes into your back, jaw, throat, or arm
• Fullness in the stomach or indigestion
• Fast and/or irregular heart rate

What Causes A Heart Attack

The most common cause of a heart attack is coronary artery disease, which is the most common type of heart disease. This is when your coronary arteriescannot carry enough oxygen-rich blood to your heart muscle. Most of the time, coronary artery disease happens when a waxy substance called plaque builds up inside your arteries, causing the arteries to narrow. The buildup of this plaque is called atherosclerosis. This can happen over many years, and it can block blood flow to parts of your heart muscle. Plaques that narrow arteries slowly over time cause angina.

Eventually, an area of plaque can break open inside your artery. This causes a blood clots to form on the plaques surface. If the clot becomes large enough, it can block blood flow to your heart. If the blockage isnt treated quickly, a part of your heart muscle begins to die.

Figure A shows damage caused by a heart attack. Figure B shows the coronary artery with plaque buildup and a blood clot.

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Do Women Fare Better Or Worse Than Men After A Heart Attack

Younger women under age 45 have a better outcome than men of a similar age. Scientists believe this is because of estrogen’s heart-protective effects. However, after menopause ends the protective benefits of estrogen, women fare worse than men. More specifically:

• Women between the ages of 45 and 65 who’ve had a heart attack are more likely to die within a year of the event compared with men of this same age.
• Women over age 65 are more likely to die within weeks of their heart attack than men over age 65.

Research Shows How Calcium Affects Sexual Healthand The Heart

Men who have high levels of calcification in their arteries are more likely to develop erectile dysfunction, according to a Johns Hopkinsled study of nearly 1,900 men, aged 59 to 64, who were followed for nine years. Calcificationcalcium deposits in the arteries to the heart caused by damageare a direct measure of blood vessel hardening, which indicates high cardiovascular disease risk. The men who were followed were heart-disease-free at the start of the study. Those found to develop heavy calcium buildup were 43 percent more likely to develop erectile problems down the road.

The study emphasizes the importance of coronary calcium screenings, which are CT scans that measure calcium buildup in heart arteries.

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