Myocardial infarction is one of the clinical forms of coronary heart disease, in which necrosis (necrosis) of a section of the heart muscle develops. About half of the cases of a heart attack end in the death of the patient if resuscitation is not carried out on time, so it is important to know the first signs of pathology and the basics of emergency care.
Symptoms in men and women are about the same. But there are some differences that you need to pay attention to when diagnosing the disease. If a person is significantly overweight, has chronic pathologies of the heart and blood vessels, leads an unhealthy lifestyle, it is important to be able to recognize the symptoms of a pre-infarction condition that may appear a few days or hours before an acute attack.
A couple of decades ago, most heart attacks in men occurred between the ages of 53 and 75. Now this figure has significantly “younger”. The likelihood of a heart attack increases several times after reaching the age of forty. Doctors believe that the main factors provoking a sad trend are:
- arterial hypertension;
- smoking;
- lack of sufficient physical activity;
- diabetes;
- obesity;
Important! Scientists have found that most often heart attacks are diagnosed in men with an aggressive and severe character, who often raise their voice, break into a scream and cannot control their emotions. Constant nervous tension is one of the causes of coronary heart disease, so it is very important to keep emotions under control. If you can’t cope with the problem on your own, it’s better to contact a specialist (in many clinics you can get free help from a psychologist if necessary).
Speaking of age limits, it is necessary to understand that they mean average values. In some regions (for example, in the Far North), there is a large number of heart pathologies in men aged 30-40 years. Shift work, serious physical activity can also undermine the work of the heart muscle and increase the risk of strokes and heart attacks.
Blood pressure control
Blood pressure is one of the main indicators of the functioning of the heart, so it is important to control it at least once a week. In hospitals and clinics there are special rooms where you can measure pressure without waiting in line. If there is no desire to go to the hospital, you can purchase a tonometer for home control. This rule applies not only to patients suffering from arterial hypertension and other ailments, but also to healthy men, since sometimes even a small emotional shock is enough to sharply increase the performance.
In 90% of patients, a heart attack begins with a sharp increase in blood pressure, which can reach 190/110 in elderly patients, and in patients with a lot of excess weight, this figure can be significantly higher - up to 220/110. Such values are critical for the human body, so most heart attacks occur in an acute form and end in the death of a man.
In the following days, the pressure begins to decrease and may even drop to normal values, which is very dangerous, since the man takes this as an improvement in well-being and thinks that the danger has passed. But on day 3-4, the tonometer readings rise again to the original mark (or very close to it).
Changes in blood pressure during the development of myocardial infarction in men
Important! Pressure surges in any direction are a serious burden on the body of a man. If the patient has chronic cardiovascular pathologies, the heart may not withstand, and death will occur, therefore, with any increase in blood pressure, it is necessary to contact a cardiologist. This is especially true for men who are at risk for developing a heart attack and pre-infarction conditions. You can find out more about this from your local cardiologist.
Signs of a heart attack in men
The main symptom of a heart attack in men of any age is pain, which is localized behind the sternum. Most often, the pain syndrome has a high intensity and begins suddenly. Some patients experience a severe pain shock and cannot help themselves (unbutton the buttons on a shirt, get the pills out of the box, etc.).
Important! The appearance of any pain in the chest is a serious symptom that can indicate many pathologies: from cervical osteochondrosis to myocardial infarction. You can not drown out the pain with pills, as this will lead to the progression of the underlying disease and deterioration of well-being. An examination by a cardiologist with the appearance of pain behind the sternum is mandatory for men of any age.
Pain during a heart attack is usually acute or stabbing, pressing, burning, squeezing or bursting in nature with irradiation to the left arm, neck, lower jaw, left shoulder blade or interscapular space. Lasts more than 20 minutes and is not supervised by taking Nitroglycerin. At the same time, other symptoms of pathology can be determined in a man, which include:
- cold sweat on the surface of the skin, having a sticky consistency;
- pallor of the skin (in some cases, a characteristic cyanosis may appear);
- fear of death;
- increased motor activity;
- arrhythmia;
- increased heart rate, followed by a drop to almost zero;
- dyspnea;
- feeling of lack of air;
- nausea and vomiting may occur;
- dizziness, up to loss of consciousness.
Do not exclude the presence of a heart attack, the patient's complaints about heaviness, chest discomfort, chest pain of another localization, heaviness, discomfort or pain in the epigastric region, shortness of breath. Such atypical complaints occur in 30% of cases and are more often presented by women, elderly patients, patients with diabetes mellitus, chronic renal failure or dementia. Therefore, in some cases it is not possible to provide the patient with the necessary assistance in a timely manner.
Important! With a myocardial infarction, the score can go not even for hours, but for minutes, therefore, if there are signs that may indicate a heart attack, you should immediately call an emergency team. If a person has already suffered a heart attack in the past, you need to act as quickly as possible, so the relatives and family members of the patient should know the rules for providing assistance at home (before the ambulance arrives).
How a heart attack is masked: signs of a pre-infarction condition in men
If you pay attention to your own body and respond to changes in its work, the first signs of a pre-infarction state can be noticed before the onset of an attack. In fact, it is possible to determine the onset of the pathology a few days before the exacerbation - it is enough to know what symptoms can be harbingers of a heart attack.
Toothache
In almost half of the cases, 2-3 days before the attack, men develop pain in the jaw and teeth, which is localized on the left side. It can be distinguished from true toothache by the following features:
- the presence of other possible symptoms of a pre-infarction condition;
- the nature of the pain is acute (real toothache often has a pulsating and aching character);
- pain does not go away after the use of local or systemic analgesics.
Important! If there is pain in the tooth on the left side, it is urgent to visit a dentist to exclude the possibility of inflammatory and carious processes. If the tooth is healthy, and the pain does not go away, this is a direct reason to contact a cardiologist. You can’t delay going to the hospital with a toothache!
Digestive disorders
Sometimes a heart attack is manifested by pain in the epigastric and abdominal space. At the same time, the stool can change dramatically in a man, heartburn and nausea appear. Perhaps a single release of vomit that does not have a strong putrefactive odor and does not contain undigested particles and bile. This is the main sign by which something is wrong - with true poisoning and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, vomit has an unpleasant odor and contains pieces of food and bile acids.
In about 20% of cases, the patient has stool disorders, diarrhea may occur, which is replaced by constipation. If a man has never suffered from diseases of the digestive system and has not consumed stale foods lately, such changes should alert and become a reason for taking laboratory tests to identify pathogenic bacteria. If the tests are in order, it is urgent to contact a cardiologist.
Temperature spikes
A very common symptom that can indicate both minor disturbances in the functioning of organs, and serious pathologies, for example, malignant tumors or a pre-infarction condition. With cancer, the temperature usually does not rise above 37.2-37.5 degrees and does not last longer than 1-2 hours. With a heart attack, the picture is completely different.
The temperature can rise to 38.5-39 °, while there are no signs of intoxication. The duration of the symptom depends on the degree of myocardial tissue damage: the temperature can last from several hours to several days, after which other signs of a heart attack gradually begin to appear. The skin turns pale, cold sweat appears, the general state of health worsens, drowsiness and weakness appear.
Asthma attack
One type of heart attack is an "asthmatic" heart attack. With this type, the patient first has symptoms of asthma:
- severe shortness of breath;
- lack of air;
- "Bubbling" in the chest;
- feeling of constriction in the chest.
The patient begins to frantically gasp for air, attempts to formulate sentences are most often unsuccessful. There is an acute need for oxygen, so it is important to free the man’s body from any squeezing objects (bracelets, watches, belts), unfasten buttons, and remove tight shoes. The attack can last from 10 to 30 minutes, after which it gradually subsides.
Important! If symptoms of asthma appear, it is necessary to urgently go to the hospital, since such a picture can end in the death of the patient.
Video - Symptoms of myocardial infarction
The appearance of any of these symptoms may indicate the development of a heart attack, so you need to call an ambulance immediately, without wasting time thinking. Many men mistake a false improvement in well-being for getting rid of the problem, but this is not so. Each new wave of an attack is becoming more difficult, and a successful prognosis for recovery directly depends on the timely provision of emergency care.
If a man has signs of a heart attack, you must perform the following steps:
- lay the patient on a hard horizontal surface (put a roller or rolled-up jacket/towel under the legs and head);
- open the vents and windows and ensure the flow of oxygen;
- remove all tight clothing and shoes from the patient;
- put a tablet of "Nitroglycerin" 0.5 mg under the tongue;
- if acute symptoms persist, you can re-give "Nitroglycerin" every 5 minutes up to 3 times;
- give to chew a tablet "Aspirin" 150-300 mg.
Myocardial infarction is a deadly pathology that can “kill” even the most healthy man. Knowing the signs and symptoms of the disease will help to take timely measures to provide the necessary assistance and save the life of the patient. The severity of symptoms depends on many factors: the degree of myocardial damage, the age of the patient, the presence of chronic diseases and concomitant pathologies, the lifestyle that a man leads. In each case, the signs of a pre-infarction state can be completely different, therefore, the initial knowledge of self-diagnosis is necessary for everyone, especially if there are people in their family who are at risk for cardiovascular diseases.
