Chest Pain / Angina Pectoris: Difference between revisions

== History ==

Patients often describe angina pectoris as pressure, tightness, or heaviness located centrally in the chest, and sometimes as strangling, constricting, or burning. The pain often radiates elsewhere in the upper body, mainly arms, jaw and/or back. <Cite>REFNAME3</Cite> Some patients only complain about abdominal pain so the presentation can be a specific. <Cite>REFNAME4</Cite>, <Cite>REFNAME5</Cite>

Another way to relieve pain is by administration of nitro-glycerine spray. Nitro-glycerine spray is a vasodilator which reduces venous return to the heart and therefore decreases the workload and therefore oxygen demand. It also vasodilates the coronary arteries and increases coronary blood flow. <Cite>REFNAME7</Cite> The response to nitro-glycerine is however not specific for angina pectoris, a similar response may be seen with oesophageal spasm or other gastrointestinal problems because nitro-glycerine also relaxes smooth muscle. <Cite>REFNAME8</Cite>

The classification of chest pain in combination with age and sex is helpful in estimating the pretest likelihood of angiographically significant coronary artery disease (Table 1).