News & Information

Heart attacks (myocardial infarction) can be deceptively difficult to recognize. An acute heart attack occurs when one of your coronary arteries suddenly becomes blocked by plaque or a blood clot. The blockage prevents blood from reaching your heart, killing at least some of the heart muscle supplied by that artery. When that happens, you need to visit the emergency room immediately!

The “classic” symptom of a heart attack is an acute, squeezing pain in and around the chest area, often radiating to the left arm. Often, it’s accompanied by an overwhelming sensation of doom or panic. Unfortunately, recognizing myocardial infarction isn’t always this easy. The discomfort may be deceptively mild and may be located in the shoulders, abdomen, back, or either arm. Sometimes, a heart attack may not involve any pain at all – just shortness of breath, vomiting or nausea. Women seem to experience these “atypical” heart attack symptoms more than men do.

If you are at risk for a heart attack (for instance, if you are middle-aged or older, overweight, a smoker or a diabetic) you should pay close attention to any painful or unusual upper-body symptoms you experience – even if they don’t seem directly related to the heart. Often, heart attacks are dismissed as indigestion or muscle pain, and the results can be tragic. (1)

In addition, at-risk individuals may want to consider a critical illness insurance policy: an unexpected heart attack can leave you not just sick, but financially vulnerable. Critical illness insurance provides a lump sum benefit when you have suffered a heart attack, allowing you to meet needs like medical costs and living expenses.

(1) Heart Health Center. November 2011. About.com. July 16 2012.

http://heartdisease.about.com/od/heartattack/a/heart_attack_signs.htm