It occurs consistently for at least 2 months and only during times of physical effort or emotional stress. These circumstances put extra strain on the heart, meaning that it needs more oxygen than the narrowed arteries allow.
Rest can help a person treat stable angina. If necessary, a doctor may prescribe an artery-relaxing medication called nitroglycerin. This type of angina is more unpredictable and dangerous. It can occur even when a person is resting, meaning that the heart consistently does not get enough oxygen. Unstable angina indicates that a person is at risk of a heart attack. A medical professional should evaluate people with unstable angina in an emergency room.
Left arm pain is probably not a result of heart problems if it has the following characteristics:. Instead, the discomfort could be a symptom of injury to the bone or tissue in the arm, shoulder, or elbow. However, even with a good understanding of these possible skeletomuscular conditions, it can be difficult to tell whether left arm pain is occurring due to injury or a heart attack.
Certain risk factors for both, such as age and physical activities, also overlap. For these reasons, it is important not to try to self-diagnose an injury or rule out a heart problem without medical assistance. A bursa is a fluid-filled sac that acts as a cushion between a bone and its surrounding soft tissue. Bursitis is inflammation of the bursa. Left arm pain may be a symptom of shoulder bursitis, which usually results from overusing this joint.
If the bursa sustains direct trauma or becomes infected, this may also contribute to left arm pain. Tendonitis is the inflammation of the connective tissue between muscle and bone. Tendonitis often develops due to repetitive joint use.
For this reason, tennis players, swimmers, and musicians often get tendonitis. The rotator cuff is a group of muscles and tendons that hold the shoulder in its socket and help a person rotate the arm and lift objects. A tear in the soft tissue of the rotator cuff can be very painful.
It typically results from shoulder overuse or direct trauma. Aging also causes degeneration of the shoulder tissue, which can increase the risk of a tear. Here, learn more about a torn rotator cuff. When one of the cushioning disks between the vertebrae of the spine ruptures, it juts out between the spinal bones and pushes against the surrounding nerves. If the disk pushes against nerves that serve the arm, a person may feel arm pain, numbness, or weakness. These symptoms might resemble those of a heart attack, but the cause is different.
Although arm and shoulder injuries may not be life-threatening, it is still important to seek medical evaluation from a doctor. Early treatment can help tissues or bones heal and prevent further damage. The most important factor of early treatment for left arm pain, however, is ruling out a heart attack. If emergency doctors decide that arm pain is the symptom of a heart attack or an arterial blockage, they will act immediately. First, they will most likely perform an electrocardiogram, blood work, a chest X-ray, and possibly a CT tomography angiography scan.
A doctor may also use an imaging procedure called cardiac catheterization. This test allows doctors to assess the extent of blockages by injecting a dye into the arteries.
Unusual fatigue, light-headedness, weakness or dizziness. Pain that radiates. Men and women often experience this pain differently, as explained below. Intermittent pain that lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back.
This sensation can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing or fullness. Anxiety or a feeling of doom. If you have angina: Any change in the frequency, duration or intensity of symptoms, which do not respond to nitroglycerin. Symptoms Can Be Different for Men and Women Men and women experience heart attack symptoms in slightly different ways.
For men: Pain will spread to the left shoulder, down the left arm or up to the chin. For women: Pain can be much more subtle. Women are also more likely to experience these accompanying symptoms: shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting and back or jaw pain. It's important to recognise the difference between the symptoms of angina and those of a heart attack.
The best way to do this is to remember that the symptoms of angina can be controlled with medicine, but symptoms of a heart attack cannot. If you have angina, you may have been prescribed medicine glyceryl trinitrate that improves your symptoms within 5 minutes. If the first dose does not work, a second dose can be taken after 5 minutes, and a third dose after a further 5 minutes.
If the pain persists, despite taking 3 doses of glyceryl trinitrate over 15 minutes, call and ask for an ambulance.
Page last reviewed: 28 November Next review due: 28 November It's still important to get medical help if you need it. Do not delay if you feel very unwell or think there's something seriously wrong.
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