A heart attack happens when a part of the heart muscle does not get enough blood.
How do you know you are having a heart attack?
The symptoms of a heart attack may be sudden and intense, but most of the times they may start slowly and persist for hours, days or weeks.
In both situations, you may experience the following signs and symptoms:
- Pain or discomfort in the center of your chest that lasts for more than a few minutes or that goes away and comes back
- Pain or discomfort in your jaw, neck, or back
- Shortness of breath
- Cold sweat
- Nausea or vomiting
- Lightheadedness
What to do?
If you notice any of the symptoms of a heart attack in yourself or someone else, you should:
- Immediately call the emergency
- Chew and swallow a baby aspirin if you are not allergic to it
- Take nitroglycerin, if it was prescribed previously by your doctor
- Avoid driving yourself to the hospital unless you have no other choice
References
https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/heart-attack/about-heart-attacks
https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/heart_attack.htm
https://www.mayoclinic.org/first-aid/first-aid-heart-attack/basics/art-20056679
Fryar CD, Chen T-C, Li X. Prevalence of uncontrolled risk factors for cardiovascular disease: United States, 1999–2010 pdf icon[PDF-494K]. NCHS data brief, no. 103. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics; 2012. Accessed May 9, 2019.