What Is Not A Heart Attack? :

By now, everyone should know heart disease is the leading cause of death in America, but what's the difference between a little chest pain and a life-threatening heart attack?

If it feels like there’s a Buick parked on your chest -- and there is -- then it's not a heart attack. But you do have a problem you should address immediately. If after closer inspection there's no Buick and the symptoms persist, you could be suffering a heart attack. You need immediate medical attention.

Dr. Curtis Mark Rimmerman, cardiologist, echocardiographer, medical director for Cleveland Clinic Westlake and author of Heart Attack: A Cleveland Clinic Guide , explains when symptoms are a heart attack and when it could just be a sign of something less lethal. It’s time you knew what is (and isn’t) a heart attack.“About 30 to 40 percent of patients who have heart attacks experience no symptoms at all, particularly in women and anyone with diabetes,” explains Dr. Rimmerman. He says they also tend not to exhibit the classic heart-attack indicators like crushing chest discomfort that shoots up through the neck or down through the arm.

In these cases, symptoms may be harder to spot. “Atypical symptoms may include a sensation of indigestion or mid-back discomfort between the shoulder blades,” Dr. Rimmerman says.

So what is and isn’t a heart attack?

What it is...
“The most common symptoms of advancing coronary artery disease or potential heart attack are shortness of breath and chest discomfort, particularly during physical exertion,” Dr. Rimmerman explains. He uses the term discomfort because it is a better descriptor than simply “chest pain” because it encompasses both feelings of pain and pressure associated with a heart attack.

The discomfort will often radiate to the throat, neck, jaw, teeth, shoulders and arms, particularly the left arm. Regardless of where the discomfort manifests, people can’t find a position that relieves the pain or obtain relief from drinking liquids, taking antacids or taking deep breaths.

If discomfort does develop, it will be unrelenting, typically for several minutes. According to Dr. Rimmerman: “It’s a sustained discomfort, often occurring alongside a shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, profound fatigue and a sense of unease or anxiety or feeling ill.”

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