Due to a general lack of medical awareness, most patients miss out on the advantages of treating a heart condition during the “golden hour” because they mistake a heart episode or angina pain for a stomach ache. Dr. Rajiv B. Bhagwat, an interventional cardiologist at Mumbai’s Nanavati Max Super Speciality Hospital, advises getting an ECG.
Due to their confusion over whether their symptoms were caused by acidity, gas, or reflux or by a heart problem, I’ve seen a lot of patients who needed urgent medical or surgical attention. They had lost a crucial window for diagnosis due to this conundrum. Indians frequently suffer from acid reflux and heartburn because they eat large meals at odd hours, which can be uncomfortable for them, especially at night. However, these symptoms can occasionally be perplexing and have a tendency to resemble those of a heart attack. It is crucial that this high risk group is aware of the significance of medical referrals given that most Indians have a higher risk of heart disease than any other population, are already dealing with blood pressure or Type 2 diabetes, are overweight, and may have a family history of heart disease. In particular, when a lack of medical knowledge results in the majority of patients mistaking a heart attack or angina pain for a gas attack, they miss out on the advantages of treating the heart problem during the “golden hour.” The chance of issues and heart tissue scarring is increased by this.
HOW CAN HEARTBURN BE A SIGN OF HEART ATTACK?
Sometimes, chest pain may not always be on the left. A heart attack typically presents as pain in the left arm or left side of the chest. But occasionally it may appear as what is known as a “referred pain,” which is pain that you experience in a location other than the original site of the pain. This means that some heart attacks can cause pain anywhere in the upper part of your torso, including the back, neck, jaw, teeth, shoulder, and behind the breast bone. A heart attack can occasionally cause sweating and a burning sensation in the middle of your chest. You may believe you are experiencing heartburn, but it could actually be caused by angina or a heart attack brought on by blocked arteries. In fact, the symptoms of a heart attack, angina, and heartburn may be very similar. Physical symptoms alone cannot distinguish between the two. However, if the symptoms persist, seem out of the ordinary for you, last longer than 15 minutes, and are unusual for you, visit the emergency room of a hospital and undergo the necessary tests to rule out a heart attack.
WHY ARE TESTS IMPORTANT?
Most people visit their primary care physician, who might not immediately demand an ECG. Actually, some doctors don’t. However, thorough investigation speeds up diagnosis, which is confusing even for medical professionals when symptoms coexist. Even if symptoms appear to lessen or disappear, the doctor must review the patient’s medical history to determine whether acid reflux or other gastrointestinal problems have existed in the past. Then, he should review the patient’s medical history and eliminate risk factors like smoking, hypertension, diabetes, cholesterol, sedentary behavior, inactivity, poor dietary choices, obesity, and a history of disease in the patient’s family. The doctor should evaluate the patient at the initial point of contact after checking this profile and requesting investigations. For instance, I would definitely recommend tests and observe him for a couple of hours if a 35-year-old smoker with cholesterol and diabetes came in complaining of gas before dismissing him. Until it is proven otherwise, doctors should treat these overlapping symptomatic cases with the same urgency as cardiac cases. Although I wouldn’t advise a CT angio for every investigation because it isn’t very helpful for determining the impact of calcified deposits, it can be used in these situations to eliminate any doubts.
WHAT TO DO IF YOU HAVE PERSISTENT CHEST PAIN AND ARE NOT SURE WHAT’S CAUSING IT?
Simply obtain your ECG in the hospital’s emergency room. Even if an unexplained chest pain that you have never had before goes away in a few hours, see a doctor. Symptoms that emerge from both heartburn and a developing heart attack can eventually go away. If it is later determined that the chest pain was caused by cardiac causes, the disappearing chest pain serves as a warning of what might occur.
HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU HAVE HEARTBURN AND ACIDITY?
Heartburn is discomfort or pain that is brought on by stomach acid entering the food pipe or the oesophagus. A burning sensation and discomfort in the chest and upper abdomen are its defining symptoms. Symptoms typically appear after a large meal but can be treated with antacids. Reflux can occasionally be present. Get yourself tested, however, if the discomfort persists and you feel restless or uneasy.
