The Main Differences Between Angina Attacks & Heart Attacks

Any sudden or long-lasting chest pain is a reason for concern. Many heart diseases and conditions can go unnoticed until pain strikes, indicating a critical problem. While chest pain often accompanies heart attacks, there are other conditions that can cause similar discomfort. Angina, a common health issue caused by decreased blood flow to the heart, can present many of the same symptoms as a heart attack, but does not require immediate emergency medical treatment as a heart attack. Dive in and discover the differences between angina pain and a heart attack, and the warning signs all patients should be aware of.

Types Of Angina And Heart Attacks

There are several types of angina and heart attacks. Stable angina refers to chest pain experienced as a result of coronary heart disease and the heart muscle not being supplied with the proper amount of blood. Stable angina generally occurs when an artery has been blocked. Unstable angina refers to unexpected chest pain that generally onsets during periods of rest. It is a result of blocked arteries, which reduces the flow of blood to the heart.

Variant angina is a rare form of heart pain that typically occurs in younger individuals and is generally the result of stress, cocaine use, exposure to cold weather, and smoking. Microvascular angina is typically the result of arterial spasms restricting the flow of blood within the heart. STEMI heart attacks are the result of blocked coronary arteries, NSTEMI heart attacks the result of partially blocked coronary arteries and CAS heart attacks the result of narrowed heart arteries that restrict blood flow.

What Causes Angina Pain?

Angina is usually related to heart disease and occurs when plaque, a fatty substance, builds up within the arteries, blocking blood flow to the heart muscle, resulting in the heart working harder and with less oxygen. This is what causes the chest pain many individuals feel when living with angina. Blood clots in the arteries of the heart can also cause angina, however, blood clots in the heart usually lead to a heart attack. This is one of the major differences between both conditions. Other causes of angina and chest pain include a pulmonary embolism, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, aortic stenosis, pericarditis, and aortic dissection.