What causes chest tightness and pain? What symptoms should I pay attention to?

Cardiovascular disease is a serious threat to human health. It includes coronary heart disease, hypertension, arrhythmia and other diseases. It has the characteristics of "high incidence, high disability rate, high mortality rate, high recurrence rate and many complications". In addition to the obvious symptoms such as palpitations and precordial pain, there are other manifestations.

1. Skin

If one or several fingers (toes) change from white to purple and then to red, it is a typical symptom of Raynaud's syndrome. Starting from the digital (toe) arteries, to the capillaries and small veins, spasms or functional occlusions occur successively, resulting in local skin paleness. Afterwards, arterial spasm subsides before venous spasm, causing blood stasis and hypoxia in the capillaries, resulting in cyanosis. After the vasospasm is relieved, local circulation is restored and reactive congestion occurs, so the skin appears flushed and finally turns to normal color.

For thromboangiitis obliterans, the patient's skin may experience mild redness in the early stages, which may turn pale or bluish as the disease progresses. When vasospasm occurs, the affected limb may suddenly experience severe pain and the skin may become cold and pale.

If your face is dark red, you may be suffering from rheumatic heart disease or mitral valve stenosis. If it is pale, it may be a sign of mitral regurgitation. When the face turns gray and purple, the expression is dull, or these are critical symptoms of late-stage heart disease, serious treatment is required.

2. Breathing

Difficulty breathing and shortness of breath are often the first sign of a heart attack. When people are doing some light activities or are in a quiet state, if they experience shortness of breath but do not have coughing or sputum, this may be a manifestation of left ventricular failure. Usually when heart function is poor, blood and oxygen cannot be delivered to the heart well, resulting in difficulty breathing.

3. Ears

Heart patients all experience varying degrees of tinnitus in the early stages. In addition, if a continuous wrinkle appears on the earlobe, it is most likely caused by coronary artery sclerosis; if a superficial tendon as thick as a little finger protrudes from the clavicle to the earlobe, it is likely a precursor to right heart failure.

4. Limbs

When middle-aged and elderly people suffer from heart disease, they often experience lower limb edema, which is a manifestation of obstructed venous blood return caused by heart failure. The fingertips or toes are obviously thicker and the nail surface is raised like a drumstick, which is common in patients with chronic cor pulmonale or cyanotic congenital heart disease.

If you experience shortness of breath during light activities or when resting; distended neck veins; are forced to stop activity due to a sudden attack of angina while working or walking; or have palpitations and shortness of breath that can only be relieved by squatting, you must pay attention to these symptoms to avoid delaying the treatment.