Every year, a lot of people become victim of angina. These include people from all over the world, including India. Often, there are several cases of heart attacks that begin with angina. According to a study, about 17 million people die due to heart attacks or cardiovascular disease (1). These figures are enough to make the alarming situation of this disease, but still it is very sad that a lot of people are not aware of it and that is why they are not able to get the proper treatment.
It is imperative that people should aware of such kind of disease, so that they can be conscious. If you are also unaware of the essential information of angina, you should read this article to the end.
What is Angina?
Angina is called as ischemic chest pain in medical language. This means chest pain, which begins with the absence of blood to the heart. In the meantime, a person may feel a heart attack or chest pressure. Usually, this pain can be cured simply, however sometimes it can also cause a lot of troubles.
Angina Pectoris ICD 10.
The code of angina pectoris ICD 10 is I20.8.
Types of Angina.
Most people may not be aware the types of this disease, that is why, when they have face pain, they are not able to categorize the type. However, it mainly consists of 4 types, which are as follows;
Stable Angina.
This is the most simple type of angina, which is caused by excess physical activity or taking stress. Usually, stable angina lasts for few minutes and it recovers automatically while you take rests. However, it is not a heart attack, but still have the possibility of heart attack. So, if you feel so, it should be communicated with the doctor.
Unstable Angina.
If a person has chest pain, which does not heal even after resting, it is called unstable angina. In this condition pain can last for a long time and can also occur again and again. This may be a sign of a heart attack, so people should contact the doctor in this situation.
Microvascular Angina.
It is another type of angina, which causes chest pain instead of having any blockage in coronary. Microvascular angina occurs when the smallest artery of the heart does not work properly, due to which the necessary amount of blood is not reached to the heart. The pain can last for 10 minutes and the problem is more likely to be seen in women.
Variants Angina.
This is a type of angina that is found in very few people. The problem of variant angina occurs mainly at night, at the time of sleeping. At that time, the arteries of heart suddenly shrink, causing unbearable pain.
| Footnote. There are 4 main types of angina which people must aware from. The four types are stable, unstable, microvascular and variant angina. |
Symptoms of Angina.
Like any other disease, angina also has some symptoms that indicate its introduction. If a person has the following symptoms, he/she should immediately contact the doctor for a health check-up.
Itching.
The most common symptom of angina is itching on the skin. It may not be a good symptom at a glance, but in recent times there have been a number of cases where angina begins with itching.
Feeling Nervous.
If a person feels nervousness, he should not ignore this problem, as it can be a symptom of angina.
Shortness of Breath.
Often, it is also seen that some people have face difficulty in breathing. However, they ignore it, but sometimes it becomes a cause of a serious disease like angina.
Abdominal Pain or Vomiting.
It is believed that most diseases are caused by stomach failure. This also applies to angina, it is often seen that some people have this disease due to abdominal pain.
Sweating.
If a person sweats a lot, he should arrange a health check-up, as it may be a sign of angina.
| Footnote. Symptoms like itching, feeling nervous, shortness of breath, vomiting, pain in abdomen and sweating are often seen in the people who have angina. |
Causes of Angina Pain.
The main five reasons for angina are;
Lack of blood to the heart muscles.
It is mainly caused by the absence of blood to the heart muscles. If this problem is identified in the right time, it can be cured, otherwise it can take a very serious form.
The chances of having CAD.
Angina are higher among people who are suffering from coronary artery disease. Such people should take special care of their health and should not hide any health problems from the doctor.
Diabetes.
Often, this disease can also occur to diabetic persons. That is why a person suffering from diabetes should try to keep his sugar level balanced.
Being overweight.
It is proved that overweight can lead to a lot of disease. This also applies to the context of this disease, as there are several cases have found that overweight people being subjected to it.
Smoking.
The risk of angina is very high in people who use smoking or drugs.
| Footnote. Angina can mainly cause due to five reasons. They are, lack of blood in heart muscle, if people is already suffering from coronary artery disease or having diabetes. Being overweight as well as smoking is also another factor of having this disease. |
Treatment of Angina.
However, angina can causes heart attack, which causes death of a large number of people. However, if it is identified in time, it is possible to treat it. If a person is suffering from it, he can get rid of it, by adopting the following method of treatment of angina;
Blood tests.
The easiest way to treat this disease is through blood tests. Due to the blood test doctor can easily find out the proper way of treatment.
ECG.
Treatment of this disease is also possible through ECG. The speed of heartbeats can be detected through ECG and if it is running in an unusual way, it can be tried to normalise.
Stress Trial.
As explained above, stress is one of the causes of angina. That is why it is also treated with stress tests.
Medications.
It can also be treated through medicines. These drugs help to prevent the growth of angina in the body.
Coronary Angiography.
When a person suffering from this disease and the condition of the patient does not improved through any kind of treatment, at that time doctor advise for coronary angiography.
| Footnote. Treatment of angina can be done through blood test, ECG, stress trial, medicines and coronary angiography. |
Complications of Angina.
If it is ignored, it can cause a lot of troubles. Often, it has been observed that people suffering from this disease face these 5 troubles;
Irregular movement of heartbeats.
Angina directly affects the heartbeats and can causes irregular heartbeats.
Heart Failure.
Often, angina becomes a cause of heart failure. In this situation, the heart is unable to pump the blood, which can cause several heart issues.
Shortness of Breath.
However, angina begins with shortness of breath, but the problem can increase considerably when it is incurable.
Heart Attack.
If angina is not treated for a long time, it can lead to a heart attack.
Death.
However, the cases of death from Angina are very low. But, if it is untreated for prolong time it may causes death.
| Footnote. If angina is not treated on time it can lead to many complications like irregular heartbeat, heart failure, shortness of breath, heart attack and even sometimes death also. |
Prevention.
However, this disease causes a lot of hardships to people. In addition, some people have to lose their lives. But, in spite of that, if people take care of the following things, they can prevent this disease;
Smoking.
Some people prefer smoking or drinking alcohol as a way of fashion or fun. But, whenever it crossed the limit, it become cause of several health issues. Therefore, it is wise not to be deceived by the world and to avoid smoking or alcohol as much as possible.
Health check.
The risk of diseases has increased to a great extent in today’s era. That is why, all of us should have a health check-up from time to time, so that we can find out the distress that we face and if there are symptoms of a disease in our body, it can be prevent in the right time.
Can Angina Be Cured By Exercise?
Regular exercise is the easiest way to prevent this disease. Exercise improve blood flow to the heart, which reduces the risk of this disease.
Healthy diet.
As we all know that unhealthy food habit is the common one among the majority of people, which is the main cause of disease. So, we should all take special care of our diet and adopt only balanced and healthy diet because it helps us to protect from serious diseases like angina.
Stress.
Avoiding stress is the main key to prevent this disease. You can reduce stress by yoga and exercise, which also improve your lifestyle.
| Footnote. To prevent this disease, people should avoid alcohol consumption or smoking and prefer regular exercise and a healthy diet etc. |
Frequently Asked Questions.
1. What are the symptoms of angina?
Symptoms of this disease include chest pain, pain in the hands and feet, shoulders, shortness of breath, dizziness, sweating etc.
2. How dangerous can angina be?
Angina is mainly occurring when blood flow to the heart muscles is low. Usually, it is not dangerous, but it is a sign that the person suffering from it, may have a heart disease or stroke. Proper treatment and the use of healthy lifestyles can reduce the risk angina and other dangerous diseases.
3. How long does angina last?
Usually, an angina attack can last for 5 to 15 minutes. However, with a little vigilance and medical help, the attack can be cured, but it can take a serious look when it lasts for a long time.
4. How can angina be treated?
It can be treated in a variety of ways, including household prescriptions, medicines, blood tests and coronary angiography etc.
5. How doctors identify angina?
Doctors use blood tests, ECG and stress tests etc. to identify angina. These tests helps the doctor to start the proper treatment, which benefits a large number of people.
6. How to find out if chest pain is dangerous to the heart or not?
Chest pain can happen to any person. So, one should immediately meet the doctor to find out whether their chest pain is really angina or not.
7. What kind of food should not be used in angina?
People suffering from angina should pay special attention to their diet and not consume low protein food such as skinless meat, fish and beans, alcohol and fast food etc.
8. Can angina kill you?
No, angina will not kill you as it is just a symptom. It is not a disease or condition.
Bottom Line.
Today stress is a common thing. While some people get rid of it easily, on the other hand, it can cause a lot of diseases. These include angina, which causes a lot of distress to the people. Because of the lack of proper knowledge, we are not able to treat it. However, a proper diet along with an active life style may help in treatment of angina and may prevent this.
Thus, we hope that it will have been useful for you to read this article and the information provided in this article will be useful for you.
+2 Sources
Freaktofit has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, educational research institutes, and medical organizations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and up-to-date by reading our editorial policy.
- Cardiovascular diseases; https://www.who.int/health-topics/cardiovascular-diseases/#tab=tab_1
- Coronary Angiography; https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/coronary-angiography
