How do you recognize cardiovascular disease?
Chest pain? Swollen ankles? Persistent shortness of breath? Unusual fatigue? Sudden speech problems? Yes, it can be a sign of cardiovascular disease because the heart and blood vessels are affected. It is important to detect it early.
In this article, you will find out the main symptoms of cardiovascular disease.
What are the main symptoms of cardiovascular disease?
This list of symptoms is not exhaustive, but it provides information about the most common symptoms in patients with cardiovascular disease. However, the presence of any of these clinical signs does not systematically mean that heart disease is present!
Of course, symptoms vary depending on the disease:
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Palpitations, perception of a slow, fast, or irregular heartbeat
- Fainting, loss of consciousness, syncope
- Dizziness
- Nausea and vomiting
- Pain in a limb, numbness or cramping of a muscle
- Swelling of the lower limbs (legs, ankles, feet)
- Change in skin color of the limbs
- Cold sweat and clammy skin
Cardiovascular disease: Symptoms that should warn you
There are 6 serious cardiovascular diseases that require urgent treatment and a call emergency Center.
They may involve the heart: heart attack, pulmonary embolism (heart-lung disease), pericarditis, but also blood vessels: thoracic aorta dissection, ruptured aortic aneurysm, lower limb arthritis, and stroke.
Here are the specific symptoms:
Myocardial infarction:
stabbing pain in the chest, as if compressed, radiating to the jaw and both arms; sometimes the pain is less severe.
Pericarditis:
occurs in an infectious setting with fever and manifests as chest pain, often aggravated by inhalation.
Pulmonary embolism:
Chest pain, stabbing pain in the flank, and sudden onset associated with dyspnea, often occurs in association with calf phlebitis in bedridden patients.
Aortic dissection and ruptured aortic aneurysm:
Manifested by very severe chest pain behind the sternum, radiating to the back between the shoulder blades, or to the abdomen if the abdominal aorta is involved.
A stroke should be treated immediately and is caused by a sudden disturbance of speech or vision, tingling in the limbs, or sudden paralysis of the limbs.
Arteritis of the lower limb may arise suddenly or worsen (acute ischemia), with excruciating pain, calf cramps with cooling, and discoloration of the foot as the first symptoms.
Myocardial infarction.
Some diseases have very specific symptoms. A good example is a myocardial infarction, also called a heart attack.
It is manifested by very severe pain behind the sternum (the flat bone in the center of the chest to which the first ribs are attached) that gives a feeling of pressure and compression as if it were a vice.
The peculiarity of this pain is that it can extend to the neck, lower jaw, and left side (shoulder, arm, wrist).
In case of a heart attack, other symptoms may also occur Fatigue, sweating, paleness, shortness of breath, etc.
In addition to this characteristic picture, a heart attack may take other deceptive forms, especially in women: Abdominal pain with gastrointestinal symptoms. These less specific symptoms should be noted and it is important not to take them lightly.
Do not try to make a diagnosis on your own. Only a specialist can make a definitive diagnosis. In case of a heart attack, the doctor should be called to the emergency center in the emergency room.
Severe cardiovascular disease can also be asymptomatic (without symptoms) up to a certain stage. However, there are some known symptoms that require consultation.
Some diagnoses are more complex than others. Some clinical pictures suggest different treatment strategies. If you have doubts or need certainty, do not hesitate to seek a second medical opinion and talk to your doctor.
Social Plugin