According to MayoClinic, heart disease is the number one killer of men and women in the world. In the United States, 40 percent of deaths occur because of heart disease. The symptoms of heart disease occur because the heart does not effectively pump enough blood to meet the demands of the body's metabolism.
Chest Pain
According to the MayoClinic, chest pain is the classic symptom of coronary artery disease. The heart depends on the coronary arteries to bring oxygen and nutrients to the heart muscle. Atherosclerotic plaques in these arteries impede blood flow to the heart muscle. When this happens, the heart becomes ischemic or lacking in oxygen and ischemia causes pain. Severe chest pain can signal a myocardial infarction or heart attack. Sometimes the pain is felt in the jaw or shoulder. Women often complain of severe chest pain and are likely to have jaw or shoulder pain.
Shortness of Breath
Shortness of breath is caused when the heart cannot pump effectively. The force of each beat of the heart ensures that blood is pushed into the aorta and sent out to the rest of the arterial system. When the heart cannot pump the necessary volume of blood into the aorta, it backs up into the lungs. This lung congestion can cause shortness of breath and signal congestive heart disease according to MayoClinic.com. Depending on the severity of the damage to the heart some patients experience shortness of breath only with exertion. Others may have shortness of breath while at rest. Shortness of breath at rest can indicate a high risk for morbidity and mortality. Occasionally, shortness of breath is considered atypical angina. This means that instead of having chest pain, a patient will have shortness of breath as a symptom of ischemia.
Anxiety
Emotional stress can overwhelm a patient with heart disease. Patients with heart disease worry over every symptom that they feel. Anxiety over the possibility of having a heart attack is high. Disabled patients become depressed because they are not able to perform daily activities of living. Emotional stress can cause an increase in heart rate and blood pressure that can be accompanied by a release in hormones that stimulate further increases in blood pressure and heart rate. This results in a greater workload for the heart. These factors influence the development of further plague buildup in the coronaries, which results in further blood flow impairment.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Heart Disease - Definition
- MayoClinic.com: Heart Attack Symptoms: Know What Signals a Medical Emergency.
- MayoClinic.com: Heart Disease Symptoms
- "Integrative Medicine". 2nd Edition. David Rakel.2007
