Many acute coronary syndrome symptoms are the same as those of a heart attack. And if acute coronary syndrome isn't treated quickly, a heart attack will occur. It's important to take acute coronary syndrome symptoms very seriously. Get medical help right away if you have these signs and symptoms and think you're having a heart attack:

• Chest pain (angina) that feels like burning, pressure or tightness and lasts several minutes or longer, which may occur with exercise, emotional stress or eating a large meal.
• Pain elsewhere in the body, such as the upper arm or jaw (referred pain).
• Nausea.
• Vomiting.
• Shortness of breath (dyspnea).
• Sudden, heavy sweating (diaphoresis).
• Lightheadedness.

If you're having a heart attack, the signs and symptoms may vary for women. Women's heart attack symptoms usually include:

• Abdominal pain or pains similar to heartburn
• Clammy skin
• Lightheadedness or dizziness
• Unusual or unexplained fatigue

When to see a doctor
If you're having chest pain and you believe it's an emergency situation, seek medical help immediately. Whenever possible, get emergency medical assistance rather than driving yourself to the hospital. You could be having a heart attack.

If you have recurring chest pain, talk to your doctor. It could be a form of angina, and your doctor can help you decide the best course of treatment.

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Acute coronary syndrome may develop slowly over time by the building up of plaques in the arteries in your heart. These plaques, made up of fatty deposits, cause the arteries to narrow and make it more difficult for blood to flow through them. This buildup of plaques is known as atherosclerosis. Eventually, this buildup means that your heart can't pump enough oxygen-rich blood to the rest of your body, causing chest pain (angina) or a heart attack.

Another medical term closely related to acute coronary syndrome is coronary artery disease. Coronary artery disease refers to the damage to your heart arteries from atherosclerosis.

If one of the plaques in your coronary arteries ruptures, it can cause a heart attack. In fact, many instances of coronary artery syndrome develop after a plaque ruptures. A blood clot will form on the site of the rupture, blocking the flow of blood through the artery.

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The risk factors for acute coronary syndrome are similar to those for other types of heart disease. Acute coronary syndrome risk factors include:

• Older age (over 45 for men and over 55 for women)
• High blood pressure
• High blood cholesterol
• Cigarette smoking
• Lack of physical activity
• Type 2 diabetes
• Family history of chest pain, heart disease or stroke

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Acute coronary syndrome is often diagnosed in emergency situations, and your doctor will perform a number of tests to figure out the cause of your symptoms. Your doctor will talk to you throughout the process and tell you what tests are being performed.

If you're having chest pain regularly, tell your doctor about it. Your doctor will probably order several tests to figure out the cause of your chest pain. These tests may include a blood draw to check your cholesterol and blood sugar levels. If you need these tests, you'll need to fast for nine to 12 hours to get the most accurate results. Your doctor will tell you if you need to fast before having these tests.

Your doctor may also want to perform imaging tests to see your heart and the blood vessels leading to it to check for blockages.

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If you have signs and symptoms of acute coronary syndrome, your doctor may run several tests to see if your symptoms are caused by a heart attack or another form of chest pain. If your doctor thinks you're having a heart attack, the first two tests you have are:

• Electrocardiogram (ECG). This is the first test done to diagnose a heart attack. It's often done while you are being asked questions about your symptoms. This test records the electrical activity of your heart via electrodes attached to your skin. Impulses are recorded as "waves" displayed on a monitor or printed on paper. Because injured heart muscle doesn't conduct electrical impulses normally, the ECG may show that a heart attack has occurred or is in progress.
• Blood tests. Certain heart enzymes slowly leak into your blood if your heart has been damaged by a heart attack. Emergency room staff will take samples of your blood to test for the presence of these enzymes.

Your doctor will look at these test results and determine the seriousness of your condition. If your blood tests show no markers of a heart attack and your chest pain has gone away, you'll likely be given tests to check the blood flow through your heart. If your test results reveal that you've had a heart attack or that you may be at high risk to have a heart attack, you'll likely be admitted to the hospital. You may then have more invasive tests, such as a coronary angiogram.

Your doctor may also order additional tests, either to figure out if your heart's been damaged by a heart attack, or if your symptoms have been brought on by another cause:

• Echocardiogram. If your doctor decides you haven't had a heart attack and your risk of having a heart attack is low, you'll likely have an echocardiogram completed before you leave the hospital. This test uses sound waves to produce an image of your heart. During an echocardiogram, sound waves are directed at your heart from a transducer, a wand-like device, held on your chest. The sound waves bounce off your heart and are reflected back through your chest wall and processed electronically to provide video images of your heart. An echocardiogram can help identify whether an area of your heart has been damaged by a heart attack and isn't pumping normally.
• Chest X-ray. An X-ray image of your chest allows your doctor to check the size and shape of your heart and its blood vessels.
• Nuclear scan. This test helps identify blood flow problems to your heart. Small amounts of radioactive material, such as thallium, are injected into your bloodstream. Special cameras can detect the radioactive material as it flows through your heart and lungs. Areas of reduced blood flow to the heart muscle — through which less of the radioactive material flows — appear as dark spots on the scan.
• Computerized tomography (CT) angiogram. A CT angiogram allows your doctor to check your arteries to see if they're narrowed or blocked. In this minimally invasive test, you'll change into a hospital gown and lie on a table that's part of the CT scanning machine. You'll receive an injection of a radioactive dye, and the doughnut-shaped CT scanner will be moved to take images of the arteries in your heart. The images are then sent to a computer screen for your doctor to view. This test is usually only done if your blood tests and electrocardiogram don't reveal the cause of your symptoms.
• Coronary angiogram (cardiac catheterization). This test can show if your coronary arteries are narrowed or blocked. A liquid dye is injected into the arteries of your heart through a long, thin tube (catheter) that's fed through an artery, usually in your leg, to the arteries in your heart. As the dye fills your arteries, the arteries become visible on X-ray, revealing areas of blockage. Additionally, while the catheter is in position, your doctor may treat the blockage by performing an angioplasty. Angioplasty uses tiny balloons threaded through a blood vessel and into a coronary artery to widen the blocked area. In most cases, a mesh tube (stent) is also placed inside the artery to hold it open more widely and prevent re-narrowing in the future.

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Treatment for acute coronary syndrome varies, depending on your symptoms and how blocked your arteries are.

Medications
It's likely that your doctor will recommend medications that can relieve chest pain and improve flow through the heart. These could include:

• Aspirin. Aspirin decreases blood clotting, helping to keep blood flowing through narrowed heart arteries. Aspirin is one of the first things you may be given in the emergency room for suspected acute coronary syndrome. You may be asked to chew the aspirin, so it's absorbed into your bloodstream more quickly. If your doctor diagnoses your symptoms as acute coronary syndrome, he or she may recommend daily aspirin therapy.
• Thrombolytics. These drugs, also called clotbusters, help dissolve a blood clot that's blocking blood flow to your heart. If you're having a heart attack, the earlier you receive a thrombolytic drug after a heart attack, the greater the chance you will survive and lessen the damage to your heart.
• Nitroglycerin. This medication for treating chest pain and angina temporarily widens narrowed blood vessels, improving blood flow to and from your heart.
• Beta blockers. These drugs help relax your heart muscle, slow your heart rate and decrease your blood pressure, which decreases the demand on your heart. These medications can increase blood flow through your heart, decreasing chest pain and the potential for damage to your heart during a heart attack.
• Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs). These drugs allow blood to flow from your heart more easily. Your doctor may prescribe ACE inhibitors or ARBs if you've had a moderate to severe heart attack that has reduced your heart's pumping capacity. These drugs also lower blood pressure and may prevent a second heart attack.

Surgery and other procedures
If medications aren't enough to restore blood flow through your heart, your doctor may recommend one of these procedures:

• Angioplasty and stenting. In this procedure, your doctor inserts a long, thin tube (catheter) into the blocked or narrowed part of your artery. A wire with a deflated balloon is passed through the catheter to the narrowed area. The balloon is then inflated, compressing the deposits against your artery walls. A mesh tube (stent) is usually left in the artery to help keep the artery open. Angioplasty may also be done with laser technology.  
• Coronary bypass surgery. This procedure creates an alternative route for blood to go around a blocked coronary artery. The blocked portion of the artery in your heart is removed, and an artery from another part of your body, such as your leg, replaces the removed portion.

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You can take steps to prevent acute coronary syndrome or improve your symptoms.

• Don't smoke. If you smoke, the most important thing you can do to improve your heart's health is to stop. Talk to your doctor if you're having trouble with quitting.
• Eat a heart-healthy diet. Too much saturated fat and cholesterol in your diet can narrow arteries to your heart. Follow the advice of your doctor and dietitian on eating a heart-healthy diet that includes plenty of whole grains, lean meat, low-fat dairy, and fruits and vegetables. Also, watch your salt and fat intake. Eating too much salt and saturated or trans fats will increase your blood pressure and cholesterol.
• Exercise regularly. Regular exercise helps improve heart muscle function and keeps blood flowing through your arteries. It can also reduce your risk of acute coronary syndrome by helping you to achieve and maintain a healthy weight and control diabetes, elevated cholesterol and high blood pressure. Exercise doesn't have to be vigorous. For example, walking 30 minutes a day, five days a week can improve your health.
• Check your cholesterol. Have your blood cholesterol levels checked regularly, through a blood test at your doctor's office. If your cholesterol levels are undesirably high, your doctor can prescribe changes to your diet and medications to help lower the numbers and protect your cardiovascular health.
• Control your blood pressure. Have your blood pressure checked at least every two years. Your doctor may recommend more frequent checks if you have high blood pressure or a history of heart disease.
• Maintain a healthy weight. Excess weight strains your heart and can contribute to high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes. Losing weight can lower your risk of acute coronary syndrome.
• Manage stress. To reduce your risk of a heart attack, reduce stress in your day-to-day activities. Rethink workaholic habits and find healthy ways to minimize or deal with stressful events in your life.
• Consume alcohol in moderation. Drinking more than one to two alcoholic drinks a day raises blood pressure, so cut back on your drinking if necessary. From a heart-healthy standpoint, one to two drinks daily is fine for men, and women can have one alcoholic beverage a day. One drink is equivalent to 12 ounces (355 milliliters, or mL) of beer, 4 ounces (118 mL) of wine or 1.5 ounces (44 mL) of an 80-proof liquor.

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The same lifestyle changes that help reduce the symptoms of acute coronary syndrome can also help prevent it from happening in the first place. Eat a healthy diet, exercise most days of the week for 30 to 60 minutes, and see your doctor regularly for checks of your blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

©1998-2009 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER). Terms of use.