Heart Disease
The term heart disease, also known as cardiovascular disease, is used to describe a wide range of heart conditions. These conditions usually affect your heart’s muscle, valves, rhythm, or the amount of blood flowing to your heart. Some conditions that fall under the umbrella term ‘heart disease’ include heart attacks, heart arrythmias, and heart failure. Because heart disease includes such a wide variety of conditions, the symptoms of heart disease vary widely as well.
Symptoms of heart attacks include:
- Chest pain, pressure, tightness or squeezing. Can radiate to your arms, neck, jaw, or back
- Nausea, indigestion, heartburn or abdominal pain
- Shortness of breath
- Cold sweat
- Fatigue
- Lightheadedness or sudden dizziness
Some symptoms of arrythmias include:
- Fluttering in your chest
- Lightheadedness
- Shortness of breath
- Dizziness
- Fainting or near fainting
Symptoms of heart failure include:
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Swelling in your legs, abdomen, or neck
The type of heart disease you have will determine what treatment plan your doctor will put you on. Your doctor may put you on medications to control your heart disease, and if the medications aren’t enough, he may recommend implantable pacing devices or a medical procedure.