Читать книгу Predicting Heart Failure - Группа авторов - Страница 59

Chest pain or discomfort is the most common symptom found in adults for several reasons either serious or trivial. It occurs due to many causes, such as muscle strain, peptic ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), asthma, etc. The pain or discomfort generated in the chest can be an important indication of possibly genuine cardiac or cardiovascular disorders. Proper care and treatment should be done early to identify the underlying cause of the chest pain and prevent it worsening. Regular exercise and healthy eating habits can greatly avoid getting chest pain.

Self-diagnosing chest pain based merely on symptoms is quite difficult. However, the frequency of pain and accompanying symptoms may help to shed light on the possible cause to some extent. The pain that arises from mild health issues including muscle strain, GERD, and asthma can last only for a few seconds and affect a specific point on the chest. Moreover, the pain is often relieved when the chest area is massaged, or after taking medication or a deep breath. Specifically, chest pain related to muscle strain gets better with massage and gets worse with sharp and sudden inhalation. Gastroesophageal reflux can cause chest pain which may be experienced shortly after a meal or consumption of alcohol. Sudden and intense pain that lasts longer than a few minutes can be an indicator of heart disease.