Sternal pain can appear at any time. A person usually in such situations has a panic, fear for life. He urgently starts taking heart drops and puts pills under his tongue. Most people with recurring pain in the heart area seek medical help. After a thorough examination and various studies, it often turns out that such pains have nothing to do with heart disease. It should be noted that there are a lot of reasons for chest pain, including heart disease. Only a doctor can deal with such circumstances.
Why does my heart hurt?
Chest pain is a common symptom among the elderly as well as middle-aged and young people. This pain does not always signal heart disease, most often it occurs with problems with the stomach, spine, lungs, ribs, chest. Any chronic pathology of the human body can cause pain in the retrosternal part. The causes of pain in the region of the heart are conventionally divided into groups.
Heart problems:
- damage to the heart muscle - myocardial infarction;
- angina pectoris - angina pectoris;
- sharp andchronic myocardial damage - ischemia;
- heart valve disease is a vice;
- high stress on the heart muscle.
Disruption of other body systems:
- musculoskeletal;
- nervous;
- respiratory;
- endocrine;
- vascular.
Some cases:
- negative effects of drugs, alcohol, nicotine;
- tumors (benign and malignant);
- cracks and broken ribs;
- malfunction of the gastrointestinal tract;
- pregnancy;
- state after anesthesia.
The main thing is to be able to distinguish pain in the heart from other neuralgic conditions, because in this case, immediate medical attention is required. And to determine the reason why the heart hurts, the type of pain helps.
Easy ways to identify heart pain
- Take valocordin or dissolve a validol tablet. The pain should subside soon.
- Hold your breath. The pain in the heart area does not stop.
- Appears aching, pain in the bones, numbness of the muscles of the forearm, retrosternal fever, sweating, shortness of breath.
For any manifestation of retrosternal pain, it is best to consult a doctor. Only he, using instrumental and biochemical research methods, can correctly diagnose.
Causes of heart disease
There are many causes of heart diseasevascular system. We list some of them:
- Viruses and infections. Untimely access to a doctor and improper treatment of acute bacterial and viral diseases, such as pneumonia, influenza, acute respiratory infections, contributes to infection in the heart muscle, causing inflammation. As a result, serious diseases develop: myocarditis, pericarditis, endocarditis. They cause pain in the region of the heart and lead to irreversible changes.
- Sedentary lifestyle. The development of many heart diseases contributes to the regular lack of feasible physical activity. With a sedentary lifestyle, it is impossible to maintain blood vessels, ligaments and muscles (including the heart) in good shape.
- Unbalanced diet. A large amount of fats and fast carbohydrates, which are abundant in modern food, harms all organs, including the heart. There is obesity of the heart muscle associated with shortness of breath, arrhythmia, and pain in the region of the heart gives into the arm.
- Alcohol abuse leads to heart rhythm disturbances, high blood pressure, causes retrosternal pain. In chronic alcoholism, cardiomyopathy appears, associated with shortness of breath and heart failure.
- Smoking. With this bad habit, the heartbeat increases, which contributes to the increased work of the heart muscle. The delivery of oxygen from the blood to various organs slows down.
With the right lifestyle and timely seeking help from a doctor, many heart diseases can be avoided.
First symptoms of heart disease
Many people oftenignore the initial signs of heart disease, considering them not serious, and waste time without starting timely treatment. It is necessary to pay attention to the following signs, which may well be associated with heart disease:
- Chest pain. The feeling that pain in the heart area presses and burns in the chest, just may be due to heart problems. A person in this case experiences a variety of types of pain: sharp, dull, aching, periodic, radiating to the back, arm and neck. It should be remembered that not always chest pain indicates a problem with the heart, it is possible, for example, with osteochondrosis.
- Increased heartbeat. Often this happens with stress, emotional stress, physical exertion. When this symptom appears without exertion, in the absence of unrest with weakness and fainting, it is necessary to consult a doctor.
- Shortness of breath. It is present in diseases associated with the lungs. But the feeling of lack of air is also possible with heart failure, as well as a heart attack.
- Dizziness. Low or high blood pressure, in addition to this symptom, often causes fatigue and nausea.
- Instability of pressure always causes problems with the cardiovascular system. Irregular pulse indicates irregularities in the work of the heart.
- Weakness. It is associated not only with overwork, but also with heart disease.
- Pale. This symptom applies to many diseases of the vessels and heart. In severe cases of diseases, cyanosis of the limbs, nose and earlobes is observed.
- Puffiness appears whenpoor kidney function and heart failure.
- Cough. A persistent dry cough is a sign of heart disease, except for colds and lung disease.
- Nausea. Her frequent attacks, similar to poisoning, with the exclusion of gastritis and stomach ulcers, indicate heart disease.
With all these symptoms, you yourself can’t figure out the reasons for their appearance, so you should contact your doctor.
Signs of pain associated with cardiology
- An attack of angina is characterized by a dull pain in the region of the heart. It can be squeezing, compressing, cutting, but not sharp. The pain radiates between the shoulder blades, in the left arm, neck, jaw. Occurs after physical exertion, stress, when changing heat to cold. The patient develops shortness of breath and a feeling of fear of death. Lasts from a few seconds to 20 minutes. Taking nitroglycerin relieves the attack.
- Myocardial infarction - there is a burning or pressing pain in the region of the heart, which radiates to the back and left side of the chest. The patient has frequent breathing, pain increases during movement. He feels a weight on his chest that makes it hard to breathe. Nitroglycerin does not help.
- Diseases of the aorta - pain in the upper part of the sternum. It appears after exercise and lasts for several days. With a dissecting aortic aneurysm, severe arching pains occur, leading to loss of consciousness.
- Myocarditis, pericarditis - there is a slight, aching pain in the region of the heart. It is constant, continuous, similar to angina pectoris. Feelsrecoil to the left shoulder and neck. During work and during sleep, shortness of breath is observed, attacks of suffocation occur. With pericarditis, the pain is dull and monotonous, the body temperature is elevated. Deep breathing and coughing increase the pain.
- Pulmonary embolism - at the beginning of the disease, the patient has severe pain in the heart, palpitations, low blood pressure, cyanotic skin. Painkillers do not stop the pain.
Pain of non-cardiac origin
- Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract - spasmodic pain in the stomach often responds with painful sensations in the chest. But unlike the heart, they are accompanied by heartburn, nausea and vomiting. Their duration is longer and is associated with food intake, they disappear after the end of the meal. Pulsating pains in the region of the heart and the left side of the chest occur with spasm of the gallbladder and ducts. And the condition during attacks of acute pancreatitis can be mistaken for a heart attack.
- Diseases of the musculoskeletal system - pain in the left half of the chest during sudden movements and holding the breath may appear from scoliosis, which is a defect in the spine, inflammation of the intercostal muscles. With these problems, a chiropractor or gymnastics will help to cope.
- Osteochondrosis - when the cervicothoracic region is affected, there is a pressing, aching pain in the region of the heart, which is easily confused with an attack of angina pectoris. It radiates to the neck, chest and arm. The pain is not relieved by nitroglycerin, but is well relieved by nonsteroidal drugs.
- CNS disorders are accompanied by frequent cardiacpain in the left lower chest. Stress pains cause irritability, sleep disturbance. A slight aching pain in a calm state in the region of the heart may appear as a result of depression.
- Intercostal neuralgia is characterized by shooting sharp pain in the region of the heart, which is aggravated by movement, inhalation, coughing, laughter. Gives to the lower back, back and heart. Confuse with angina pain.
Heart disease in children
Childhood diseases of this organ often end in disability, and in some cases are fatal. Children, unlike adults, very rarely complain of pain in the heart and ailments, so it is important to make a diagnosis in time and start therapy. Most often they have heart defects, of which there are many varieties. All of them are very dangerous and are often treated only by surgery, even immediately after birth. Often the cause of heart disease in a child is a complication after suffering a sore throat. Parents need to carefully monitor the he alth of their children so as not to miss the development of a serious illness.
Pain in the heart and shoulder blades
In this case, the cause of pain must be sought in the heart itself, but other pathologies that provoke them should not be excluded. Pain in the heart and under the scapula can be acute, burning, dull, pulling and pressing. When it appears, you should pay attention to the duration, intensity, change in different positions of the body.
With recoil under the shoulder blade, pain occurs with the following diseaseshearts:
- Ischemic disease, manifested in the form of angina pectoris, occurs due to poor blood supply to the heart muscle. The consequences are myocardial infarction and angina pectoris, which is characterized by paroxysmal pains in the heart that appear during physical exertion and stress, lasting up to 15 minutes. They pass on their own when the causes that caused them are eliminated.
- Coronary spasm - heart failure caused by narrowing of the walls of blood vessels, manifested by severe pain. Often the attack begins in the supine position.
- Arrhythmia - failure of the heart rhythm, pain is absent, but they can occur against its background with the appearance of angina pectoris.
- Myocardial infarction - the blood supply to the left ventricle of the heart abruptly stops and the death of the affected area. There is severe retrosternal pain, shortness of breath, unstable pulse, anxiety and fear. The attack appears suddenly, lasts up to forty minutes, nitroglycerin does not help. Urgent medical assistance required.
The most dangerous case of pain in the heart and left shoulder blade is a heart attack. As mentioned earlier, the attack occurs suddenly, and drugs do not help, so the patient must be quickly taken to a medical facility.
Stitching pain in the region of the heart
It is because of this pain that people most often go to the doctor. Tingling in the left side of the chest causes an alarming condition, although this is not always associated with myocardial diseases. A stabbing pain in the heart may result from:
- intercostal neuralgia, pathologicalchanges in the costal cartilages (with these diseases, there is an increase in pain during bending, sudden movements of the hands, turns of the torso);
- neuroses;
- curvature of the spine in the thoracic region;
- nerve root pinching;
- osteochondrosis (pain is aggravated by coughing, deep breathing, turning the torso).
With stabbing pains in the region of the heart, it is necessary to identify the reason for which they arose. Most often this is associated with symptoms of vegetovascular dystonia, indicating disorders in the functioning of the nervous system. People have a feeling of anxiety, headaches, pressure surges, incomprehensible sensations in the heart. And the cause can be a busy rhythm of life and frequent stressful conditions. When tingling in the heart, it should be determined whether the pain depends on physical activity, whether it increases with a change in posture, whether pain is felt in the region of the heart when inhaling. A positive response to one of the statements suggests that the pain is not related to heart disease. In any case, you should consult a neurologist, and if necessary, he will refer you to a cardiologist for examination.
Prevention of heart disease
Preventive measures prevent the development of many heart diseases and help to recover. These measures include:
- Sports. They strengthen the heart and the body as a whole. Physical activity contributes to the combustion of carbohydrates, saturation of the cells of the body with oxygen. Swimming is especially usefulrunning.
- He althy eating. For good heart function, frequent meals in small quantities without sugary, fatty and fried foods are necessary. The menu for convalescents should include pumpkin (contains potassium, vitamin C, strengthens blood vessels, reduces pressure), broccoli, pomegranate (strengthens blood vessels, thins the blood, improves hemoglobin).
- No stress. You should not retire at home, you need to be outdoors more often, meet friends, do what you love.
- Quit bad habits such as smoking and alcohol abuse. Feeling better immediately.
- Periodic examinations. Heart disease is difficult to identify on your own, so once a year you need to take a biochemistry test.
The implementation of such elementary measures will help prevent many diseases and at least relieve obesity, when pain in the heart area presses on the chest and interferes with breathing.
Diagnosis of pain in the heart
In order to accurately determine the pain in the heart, an in-depth examination should be carried out. This can be done with:
- electrocardiography - examine the activity of the heart;
- blood biochemistry - evaluate the work of internal organs, establish the need for trace elements, receive information about metabolism;
- echocardiography - examine all changes in the heart and valves;
- electron-beam tomography - diagnose all types of pathologies of the heart and blood vessels;
- MRI - determine the cause of pain.
When contactedto the clinic with complaints of pain in the heart area, the patient needs to visit a cardiologist, neuropathologist, rheumatologist and gastroenterologist.
Principles of treatment of pain in the left side of the chest
After clarifying the diagnosis, the doctor begins to treat the patient. Therapy of cardialgia, when pain in the left half of the chest is not associated with damage to the vessels of the heart, is due to the treatment of the underlying disease. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are used to relieve pain from myocarditis and pericarditis, as well as inflammation of the muscular and nervous systems.
Sedatives are used to treat neurocircular dystonia. Medications with metabolic action relieve pain in myocardial dystrophy. Diseases of the digestive organs are treated depending on their damage.
Conclusion
In the process of examining a patient with pain in the region of the heart, the most important point is to find out the cause of their appearance. A correct diagnosis is the beginning of recovery. Modern diagnostic equipment allows you to correctly and quickly make a diagnosis using electrocardiography, echocardiography, dopplerography and other methods for research. A "non-cardiac" cause of pain is identified with the help of MRI, ultrasound and radiographic examination. A conversation between a patient and a doctor helps to collect all the information about the pathology, past diseases, which allows you to determine the scope of research, appoint consultations of narrow specialists and choose a course of therapy.
