Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Coronary ischemia, myocardial ischemia, [1] or cardiac ischemia, [2] is a medical term for abnormally reduced blood flow in the coronary circulation through the coronary arteries. [3] Coronary ischemia is linked to heart disease, and heart attacks. [4] Coronary arteries deliver oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle. [5]
The term derives from Latin angere ' to strangle ' and pectus ' chest ', and can therefore be translated as "a strangling feeling in the chest". An urgent medical assessment is suggested to rule out serious medical conditions. [5] There is a relationship between severity of angina and degree of oxygen deprivation in the heart muscle.
The cardinal symptom of critically decreased blood flow to the heart is chest pain, experienced as tightness, pressure, or burning. [5] Localisation is most commonly around or over the chest and may radiate or be located to the arm, shoulder, neck, back, upper abdomen, or jaw. [5] This may be associated with sweating, nausea, or shortness of ...
Levine's sign is a clenched fist held over the chest to describe ischemic chest pain. [1]It is named for Samuel A. Levine (1891–1966), an influential American cardiologist, who first observed that many patients with chest pain made this same sign to describe their symptoms.
In adults who go to the emergency department with an unclear cause of pain, about 30% have pain due to coronary artery disease. [29] Angina, shortness of breath, sweating, nausea or vomiting, and lightheadedness are signs of a heart attack or myocardial infarction, and immediate emergency medical services are crucial. [28]
Cardiac ischemia may be asymptomatic or may cause chest pain, known as angina pectoris. It occurs when the heart muscle, or myocardium, receives insufficient blood flow. [10] This most frequently results from atherosclerosis, which is the long-term accumulation of cholesterol-rich plaques in the coronary arteries.
Pain radiates most often to the left arm, but may also radiate to the lower jaw, neck, right arm, back, and upper abdomen. [28] [29] The pain most suggestive of an acute MI, with the highest likelihood ratio, is pain radiating to the right arm and shoulder. [30] [29] Similarly, chest pain similar to a previous heart attack is also suggestive. [31]
The most common symptom is centrally located pressure-like chest pain, often radiating to the left shoulder [2] or angle of the jaw, and associated with nausea and sweating. Many people with acute coronary syndromes present with symptoms other than chest pain, particularly women, older people, and people with diabetes mellitus. [3]