Indigestion or Heart Attack? Know The

By Dr. Sameer Gupta in Cardiology Interventional Cardiology

Sep 19, 2020

One of the patients who was being treated at our centre forST-elevation myocardial infarction (a heart attack from a completely blocked vessel) did not realise that she was having a heart attack and kept self-medicating herself with home remedies for indigestion until she was rushed to the emergency care at the one of the best heart hospital in the Delhi NCR.  Timely ECG was done and her angiography demonstrated a 100% blocked vessel, she was immediately treated by a team of world-renowned cardiology experts who implanted two stents in the vessel. This is a common theme encountered by most cardiologist across various cases.

Most heart patients admitted to emergency care with cardiac problems reportedly misjudge the heart attack symptoms as indigestion problem. People usually associate a heart attack with pain in the chest radiating to the jaw and down the left arm. Visuals of the classic Levine sign – where the patient places his clenched fist over the chest to describe the pain of heart attacks in the movies and the inapt information regarding heart attacks can be considered as the reason for this belief.

Also Read: TAVI in Elderly Patients: Balancing Benefits and Risks

Woman, elderly or diabetic suffering heart attack may or may not show such symptoms but some variation of pain and discomfort as in the above-mentioned case. We should be aware of the symptoms and should be able to discern between indigestion and a heart attack otherwise it may become a life-threatening situation. It is important to know the typical and not to so typical pains that should prompt a visit to the best cardiology hospital.

Many symptoms of severe indigestion and heart attack can appear similar, but understanding their differences can help you distinguish between the two. Indigestion and other forms of non-cardiac chest pain often cause discomfort in the area behind the breastbone, similar to the pain experienced during a heart attack. However, heart attack pain is usually much more intense and is often described as a feeling of squeezing, tightness, pressure, constriction, crushing, or strangling in the chest.

Also Read: Why Younger People Are Getting Heart Attacks: An Alarming Trend

Heart attack symptoms may also include sensations of burning, discomfort similar to heartburn, a feeling of fullness, or a tight, band-like pressure across the chest. Other common feelings include a heavy weight pressing down on the chest—sometimes likened to an elephant sitting on it—a knot in the center of the chest, a lump in the throat, persistent ache, or even toothache if the pain radiates to the lower jaw.

Unlike indigestion, heart attack pain is generally not sharp, fleeting, or stabbing. It may sometimes feel like pins and needles, but more often, it is a steady, overwhelming discomfort that does not go away quickly.

Also Read: TAVI in High-Risk Patients: Providing a Safer Option

Certain characteristics of the pain may indicate that it is more likely to be heart-related:

• Sudden pain radiating to right or left or both arms and/or shoulders
• Left chest pain radiating to the jaw or back
• Pain that worsens on exertion
• Pain associated with sweating
• Pain associated with nausea or vomiting
• Pressure pain
• Worse than previous cardiac pain or similar to the last episode
• Indigestion with sweating

Some features to suggest that the pain is less likely from the heart –

• Pain that worsens with breathing
• A sudden, sharp pain that disappears within a few seconds.
• Pain that worsens on touching
• Quality &  intensity of the pain that changes with position

It must be mentioned that above all symptoms may also occur due to other medical conditions, so it is advisable to consult a cardiologist at the first instance when you perceive any of the above symptoms