What is angina pectoris?
Angina pectoris (or heart cramp) is a cramping pain in the chest. The pain may radiate to the left arm or jaw and sometimes to the back. The pain usually starts when you are emotionally, you after you've eaten a lot of efforts are made, or if you have a hot to a cold room. The pain goes away after a few minutes of rest.
Angina pectoris is usually due to hardening of the arteries around the heart. Sometimes the cause heart disease or very severe anemia.
Angina pectoris is treatable. For mild symptoms, you will receive medication. The drugs do not work or you feel worse and worse? Then probably need angioplasty or bypass surgery. If you already have heart problems or heart problems can run in families, the doctor will decide rather to angioplasty.
Are you getting more and more attacks if they become worse? Please consult your doctor. Do this even if you think the drugs work less well.
The pain lasts longer than fifteen minutes, and the drugs do not help? You can have a heart attack. Directly call the hospital or your doctor.
What determines the physician angina pectoris?
The physician will determine angina pectoris you ask questions and by doing some tests.
- An electrocardiogram (ECG) provides information about blood flow to the heart muscle.
- An echocardiogram is an examination that allows the doctor looks at your heart. The health of the heart muscle can be seen on an echocardiogram well.
- At an exercise test cycle on a home trainer or walk on a treadmill. The doctor will check your blood pressure and your heart rate and at the same time makes an electrocardiogram (ECG).
- In an isotope research doctor injects a small amount of radioactive liquid into a vein. The heart muscle this liquid is increasing rapidly, except in areas with a lack of oxygen. This can be seen on a special kind of picture. The amount of radioactivity is about the same as the radiation in an X-ray. This is harmless, except when you are pregnant.
- For a cardiac catheterization you stay a day or longer in the hospital. You will be injected contrast agent. Then the hospital staff makes X-ray films of your heart and blood vessels around it. Narrowings and blockages are easy to find this.
Dealing with angina pectoris
You can do a lot of angina pectoris by living healthy. Stop smoking and exercise regularly. That is sometimes enough to make the symptoms disappear.
Physical exercise improves the health of heart and blood vessels. Suitable forms of exercise are all that you can talk just yet and not out of breath. Such as hiking, cycling and swimming, but also golf, aqua jogging and dancing. But first consulting with your doctor about what is right for you.
If you are overweight you need to lose weight. Change your eating habits and exercise more. Against high blood pressure and high cholesterol you get medication.
Usually you can just stay car with angina pectoris. Put the car on the side of the road if you have a seizure. You sit for your job much behind the wheel, talk with your doctor whether you can continue to do this work.
Even sex can trigger an attack, like other types of exercise. Previously taking medication usually helps. Discuss at least with your partner that you can get an attack. Then you can both take this into account.