Because silent heart attacks may go unnoticed, they can cause a significant amount of damage. And without treatment, they can be deadly.
Having a silent heart attack increases the risk of having another heart attack, which could be deadly. Having another heart attack also increases the risk of complications, such as heart failure.
People often don't know they've had a silent heart attack until weeks or months later when a healthcare provider finds heart damage. Missing signs or symptoms normally unrelated to a heart attack can make it tricky to identify a silent heart attack.
They note that about half of all survivors of a silent heart attack died within 10 years of the incident, which is the same rate as for other survivors of heart attacks. However, people who have had a silent heart attack may be at risk of other complications, such as heart failure and stroke.
Silent heart attacks may not cause pain, but they are still as serious. In fact, people who suffer silent heart attacks are more likely to die of heart disease. “There is a significant mortality associated with silent heart attacks,” says Ryan.
The people who are most vulnerable to silent heart attacks fall into one of three categories: women, people with diabetes and people who are elderly. "The reason these groups are most at risk is because they don't present with the tell-tale symptom of severe, pounding chest pain," Dr. Kazziha says.
Normally, silent heart attacks are found long after the heart attack is over. Treatment will mostly involve taking medicines. These medicines help improve blood flow to your heart, prevent clotting, and reduce the risks of having another heart attack.
A silent heart attack can be just as dangerous as its more obvious counterpart, says Ekery. Because the event often leaves scarring and damage to the heart, it puts the person at greater risk of other heart problems.
They may last for a few minutes or several hours. Untreated heart attack symptoms can lead to serious complications or even death. Therefore, it is important that people receive urgent treatment once symptoms begin.
Silent heart attacks are usually discovered on an electrocardiogram (ECG), which is a recording of the heart's electrical activity. Damage to the heart's muscle caused by a heart attack shows up as a distinct signature on an ECG.
Troponin testing will help doctors to identify apparently healthy individuals who have silent heart disease so we can target preventative treatments to those who are likely to benefit most.”
Sudden stress can cause a cardiac event that feels like a heart attack, called takotsubo cardiomyopathy or “broken heart syndrome.” This stress-induced cardiomyopathy isn't associated with the artery blockages that lead to a heart attack, though it may cause your heart to pump inefficiently for up to a month.
Some produce no symptoms, or only produce mild symptoms that are so unremarkable that people mistake them for something else — heartburn from a lunchtime burrito, fatigue, or a chest muscle strain. "The true incidence of silent heart attacks is not known, since by definition they go unnoticed," says Dr.
Seemingly healthy people are “suddenly” having heart attacks because, as it turns out, their arteries are not perfectly healthy and they don't know it. With the proper noninvasive tests, these diseased arteries would have been identified, and the heart attacks wouldn't have happened.
In a “mini” heart attack, blood flow to the heart is partially blocked. Symptoms include chest pain and are similar to those of a heart attack, but there is less damage to the heart. The technical term for a “mini” heart attack is a non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI).
Heartburn, angina and heart attack may feel very much alike. Even experienced doctors can't always tell the difference from your medical history and a physical exam. That's why, if you go to the emergency room because of chest pain, you'll immediately have tests to rule out a heart attack.
An EKG can help identify a previous heart attack by screening for abnormalities in the electrical activity of your heart. EKG results are often best used in combination with blood tests and imaging techniques to reduce the chances of a false positive.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is more effective than electrocardiography (ECG) at identifying "silent" heart attacks, also known as unrecognized myocardial infarctions, according to a study performed by National Institutes of Health researchers and international colleagues.
"Most people would accept that women and people with diabetes are more likely to have silent or unrecognized (heart attacks)," Kontos said. The symptoms of a silent heart attack can include indigestion, feeling like you have a strained muscle in the chest or upper back, or prolonged, excessive fatigue.
Taking aspirin during a heart attack is safe and recommended. If you think you're having a heart attack, call 911 or emergency medical services. Don't delay calling for help. Aspirin alone won't save your life if you're having a heart attack.
When arteries are already narrowed by the buildup of plaque, a clot can block a blood vessel and stop the flow of blood to the brain or heart. Taking a regular dose of aspirin diminishes the ability of your blood to clump together into clots by targeting the body's smallest blood cells.
Daily aspirin users may be better protected against heart disease or stroke if they take the blood-thinning pills before turning in at night, according to new research presented at the American Heart Association's (AHA) annual meeting in Dallas this week.
Aspirin for heart attack prevention
But people who think they may be having an attack need an extra 325 mg of aspirin, and they need it as quickly as possible. For the best results, chew a single full-sized 325-mg tablet, but don't use an enteric-coated tablet, which will act slowly even if chewed.