 | Joseph P. Galichia, MD is the founder and Medical Director of the Galichia Medical Group, PA. He is an internationally recognized pioneer in the field of interventional cardiology. In the 70's, Dr. Galichia studied in Zurich, Switzerland with the inventors of the balloon angioplasty technique for treating heart disease. As a result of his experience, he was able to bring this historic technique back to the United States where he was one of the first physicians to perform coronary angioplasty here. A noted medical spokesman, he appears on a weekly Newstalk segment on KWCH Channel 12 and has a weekly syndicated radio talk show on KNSS 1330 AM every Saturday live from 11:00 am to noon. Dr. Galichia may be contacted by sending an e-mail to service@galichia.com |
Health & Medicine
1969-12-31 18:00:00
Heart attack or acid reflux?
: Can you explain the similar symptoms of a heart attack and acid reflux? How will you know the difference?
ANSWER: The symptoms of a heart attack and the symptoms of acid reflux often overlap. Heart attacks can have many varied presentations including chest pain, often described as the worst pain one could imagine. The pain usually is located in the center of the chest and may radiate to the left arm, neck or jaw. The pain may be described as a pressure sensation, "like an elephant sitting on my chest". Other patients may describe a severe burning in the chest or an aching sensation. On the other hand, many patients may not have symptoms of chest pain at all. Women for example, are less likely to have the "Hollywood heart attack", but are more likely to have more subtle symptoms. Other symptoms of heart attack include shortness of breath, excessive sweating, weakness, nausea, vomiting, a feeling of faintness, or a feeling of impending doom. One can see that these symptoms are complex to assess and may present with varying severity. I am very humble about making this diagnosis and always tell my students that no patient ever read the textbook on how to present with a heart attack. We also tell all of our patients to mistake on the side of seeking help if they have these symptoms or even the feeling that something is wrong with their body. Early intervention is critically important and may be a life or death matter. A recent study has shown that most women in fact, do not have chest pain at all and usually present with fatigue, shortness of breath, or other more subtle symptoms. Now compare these symptoms to patients with acid reflux, or GERD. Most of these patients complain of "heartburn", a symptom that may also be a symptom of heart attack. These patients may also complain of nausea and vomiting and often a sense of anxiety. The worst mistake a patient can make is to mistake the symptoms of a heart attack for GERD. We often see patients with severe unrelenting heartburn who try to talk themselves out of going to the ER and then die of a heart attack. Needless to say, given the fact that patients may present so differently, doctors and patients must always be on alert for a clue that a heart attack is in the making. If you make a trip to the ER with a simple attack of heartburn, you can celebrate that no heart damage occurred.
