Myocardial infarction in women does not always have a classic symptomatology. From this article you will learn: what are the first signs of the onset of the disease, and what symptoms of a heart attack in women are the reason for urgent medical treatment( in an ambulance or in a hospital).
Contents of the article:
- Harbinger of the disease
- Signs of the onset of the acute period
- First aid for the
infarction A classic sign that allows identifying myocardial infarction is acute chest pain. This symptom has the name of anginal status, and manifests itself in 95% of cases in patients under 60 years old. But this statistics is more extended to men. Women are mainly susceptible to myocardial infarction after 60 years. Before this age they are insured against this disease due to the high level of estrogen.
Estrogens prevent the development of a heart attack, preventing the formation of atherosclerotic plaques and reducing the contractility of the wall of the coronary vessels. Thus, two possible causes of the onset of the disease are leveled: irreversible spasm of the coronary artery and its clogging with cholesterol plaques.
In the period of postmenopause, as the synthesis of estrogens is suppressed, the probability of myocardial infarction increases in women. But by this age they come with the luggage of other chronic diseases: arterial hypertension, arrhythmia, and a number of other pathologies not related to the activity of the heart muscle. The combination of these diseases together with the localization of the affected area of the heart does not always give the classic symptomatology of a heart attack. In 25-40% of cases, women register atypical forms of myocardial infarction, which greatly complicates the diagnosis.
Myocardial infarction is dangerous not only for a potential disability, but also for a rather high mortality rate. A timely consultation with a cardiologist minimizes the risk of developing it. Therefore, women need to know which symptoms are the first signs of irreversible pathology.
Harbinger of
The positive outcome of myocardial infarction in women is much lower than in men. But women have a chance to prevent the development of the process, because the period preceding myocardial infarction, they can last 1-2 months. During this time, there is an increase in symptoms, indicating the gradual development of heart failure:
- Feeling of constant fatigue, which does not go away after sleep or rest.
- Sleep disorder, insomnia.
- Heart rate disorder, more often - tachycardia( rapid heartbeat).
- Attacks of dyspnea, shortness of breath.
- Puffiness of the feet and hands, which increases in the evening.
- The appearance of signs of periodontitis - increased bleeding and pain in the gums.
- Mood swings, the appearance of a feeling of inexplicable panic, fear.
- Urgent urge to go to the toilet at night.
The presence of one or more of the above signs indicate the need for immediate contact with a doctor( cardiologist, therapist).
But it should be remembered that in 54% of cases in women the infarction is preceded by angina pectoris - a stable spasm of the coronary vessels, which passes after the intake of nitrates. Therefore, the increased pain in the chest, even if after they take the medicines they go away, serve as an alarming symptom and require examination by specialists in the cardiology profile.
Signs of the onset of the acute period of
More than 100 years ago, the founders of the theory of myocardial infarction VP Obraztsov and ND Strazhesko, in addition to classical anginal symptoms, identified a number of atypical forms that the disease can manifest. Symptoms of a heart attack in women often have the following forms of manifestations:
- Anginous status - recorded in 60-75% of cases. With the development of this form in women, the pain is localized in the upper left part of the body: the neck, the shoulder, the arm, the upper part of the thorax. There is a feeling of self-passing toothache. A characteristic feature of women is also acute pain in the nape. The remaining manifestations of angina status are the same as in men: profuse sweating, cyanosis of the skin, numbness of the extremities, panic. The pain is intense, and does not pass from taking nitrates.
- Asthmatic status - recorded in 10% of cases, its main characteristic: the presence of signs of bronchospasm. In this case, the patient in the absence of physical exertion has shortness of breath, breathing is difficult. These symptoms are worse when you rotate your torso. This form of symptomatology is of elderly women, against the backdrop of a previous heart attack or prolonged hypertension.
- Abdominal form - manifested in 2-3% of cases. It develops when the posterior wall of the myocardium is damaged. Symptoms of such a heart attack suggest a false suspicion about the pathology of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract.
Anginous status with asthmatic and abdominal form may appear later. But the primary symptomatology of atypical forms complicates the diagnosis, and only an experienced ambulance doctor is able to immediately put the right diagnosis.
How to distinguish atypical forms of heart attack by other diseases:
| atypical forms | For a disease similar | Differences |
|---|---|---|
| Status asthmaticus | Asthma | not comes relief from receiving bronchodilators drugs |
| myocardial infarction is rarely accompanied by cough | ||
| Abdominal status | Acute pancreatitis, appendicitis,perforation of stomach ulcers | With the use of antispasmodics and antacids the pain does not pass |
| In case of a heart attack, the painful sensations are undulating, with diseasesGastrointestinal tract of constant intensity |
Less common in women are the following atypical forms:
- Arrhythmic status is due to a higher heart rate in women, which predetermines the development of arrhythmia. With this form of heart attack, only the disturbance of the heart rhythm is recorded, with no pain at all.
- The cerebral form is typical for elderly people with stable impairment of cerebral circulation. In this case, myocardial ischemia is accompanied by neurological disorders - confused speech, dizziness, impaired coordination, may be oppression of consciousness.
- Asymptomatic form - is more often manifested in patients with diabetes mellitus. The attack itself is accompanied by increased irritability and severe sweating, while the patient does not suffer from pain. If such an infarction did not have an extensive myocardial lesion zone, then it is detected during the next preventive examination on the ECG.
All of the above symptoms indicate the onset of necrosis of the site of the heart muscle and require an emergency call. Treatment of the disease is carried out exclusively in stationary conditions.
First aid for a heart attack
If you have signs of a myocardial infarction, call an ambulance immediately. Prior to her arrival, do the following( for the patient or yourself):
- Ensure the patient is at rest, explain that any movement is fraught with deterioration.
- Put the patient on the bed, and slightly lift his head. If the patient is dominated by attacks of suffocation, then put him so that he feels the breathing easier.
- Give the patient a nitroglycerin pill under the tongue. If after 20 minutes the ambulance has not arrived yet, let it chew the pill. No other medications that the patient used to take before the doctors' arrival do not give. They do not stop the attack, but they can make further diagnosis more difficult.
- Before arriving at the ambulance, prepare all medications that the patient has previously received and all of his medical records.
- Do not leave the patient unattended during this period.
- If a cardiac arrest occurs, make indirect cardiac massage and artificial respiration for the patient.
