Atypical heart symptoms can include symptoms such as pain in the upper back, stomach, right arm, or just a general feeling that something is wrong (called general malaise). Both men and women can have these atypical signs and symptoms but they are more common in women than in men.
In a recent study of heart attack sufferers the researchers found that right sided discomfort was 4.7 times more likely to be reported by men and women complained of throat discomfort 12 times more. More men complained of an overall feeling of discomfort while vomiting was reported 3.9 times more likely in women. Researchers also found that men were five times more likely to recognize their symptoms as a heart attack than women. (1)
On average men waited three hours before going to the hospital while women waited four hours. Of course this is not only very dangerous but also will decrease the number of options available to treat the heart attack once the person reaches the hospital. There are medical treatments that must be started within one or two hours after the person feels symptoms in order for the treatment to work and reduce the need for any subsequent surgery. The CDC reported that in 1999 almost half of the deaths from heart attacks happened before the person reached the emergency room for treatment because people delayed getting help.
References:
(1) Nursing Research Editor: Symptom Clusters in Acute Myocardial Infarction
http://www.nursing-research-editor.com/authors/OMR/21/OMRManuscript.pdf
Resources:
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Hospital: Heart Disease
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Prevalence of Coronary Heart disease
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6040a1.htm
Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Women and Heart Disease Fact Sheet
http://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fs_women_heart.htm
MayoClinic: Heart Disease
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/heart-disease/HB00040
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