Cardiac signs and symptoms Flashcards
Which events come under the category of acute coronary syndrome (ACS)?
- STEMI
- NSTEMI
- Unstable angina
What is the difference between a STEMI vs NSTEMI?
STEMI = blocked off artery completely NSTEMI = Partial blockage, but not complete occlusion of the coronary artery and raised troponin
What are the cardinal symptoms of ACS events?
- Chest pain
- Crushing ischaemic pain
- Radiates to left arm and jaw - Breathlessness
- Palpitations
- Syncope
- Haemoptysis
- Nausea
- Oedema
- Cough
- Fatigue
Haemoptysis can be seen with which diseases?
- Pulmonary oedema
- Mitral stenosis
- Pulmonary infarction
- Lung carcinoma
Give some different causes of fatigue?
- Excessive diuresis
- Diuretic induced hypokalaemia
- Reduced cardiac output
- Drugs e.g. beta-blockers
- Heart failure
- Hypertension
Different ways that sputum can present and what this signifies: ‘pink frothy’
Pulmonary oedema
Different ways that sputum can present and what this signifies: clear, white, mucoid sputum
Viral infection or longstanding bronchial irritation
Different ways that sputum can present and what this signifies: thick, yellowish sputum
Infection
Different ways that sputum can present and what this signifies: rusty sputum
Pneumococcal pneumonia
Different ways that sputum can present and what this signifies: blood-streaked sputum
Tuberculosis
Bronchiectasis
Lung cancer
Pulmonary infarction
Ischaemic cardiac chest pain is which two processes?
MI
Angina
Explain the site, character, pattern, severity and radiation of ischaemic cardiac chest pain
Site: chest
Character: tightness/crushing/heavy/squeezing
Pattern: Always there in MI and comes with stress or exertion in angina
Severity: extreme
Radiation: shoulder (L) or jaw
Chest pain is not likely to be ischaemic if…
- It is continuous/very prolonged
- Unrelated to activity
- Brought on by breathing in
Give differential diagnoses for retrosternal pain
- Myocardial ischaemic pain
- Pericardial pain
- Oesophageal pain
- Aortic dissection
- Mediastinal lesions
- PE
Give differential diagnoses for shoulder pain
- Myocardial ischaemic pain
- Pericarditis
- Subdiaphragmatic abscess
- Diaphragmatic pleurisy
- Cervical spine disease
- Acute musculoskeletal pain
- Thoracic outlet syndrome
Give differential diagnoses for arm pain
- Myocardial ischaemic pain
- Cervical/dorsal spine pain
- Thoracic outlet syndrome
Give differential diagnoses for epigastric pain
- Myocardial ischaemic pain
- Pericardial pain
- Oesophageal pain
- Duodenal pain
- Pancreatic pain
- Gallbladder pain
- Distention of the liver
- Diaphragmatic pleurisy
- Pneumonia
Give differential diagnoses for RIGHT lower anterior chest pain
- Gall bladder pain
- Distention of the liver
- Subdiaphragmatic abscess
- Pneumonia/pleurisy
- Gastric or duodenal penetrating ulcer
- Pulmonary embolisation
- Acute myositis
- Injuries
Give differential diagnoses for LEFT lower anterior chest pain
- Intercostal neuralgia
- PE
- Myositis
- Pneumonia/pleurisy
- Splenic infarction
- Splenic flexure syndrome
- Subdiaphragmatic abscess
- Precordial catch syndrome
- Injuries
Which features may make a diagnosis of stable angina unlikely?
- Continuous or prolonged pain
- Unrelated to activity
- Brought on by breathing
- Associated with symptoms such as dizziness, palpitations, tingling or difficulty swallowing
Typical angina meets which characteristics? Compare this with atypical angina and non-cardiac chest pain
- Substernal chest discomfort of characteristic quality and duration
- Provoked by exertion or emotional stress
- Relieved by rest and/or GTN
- Atypical angina meets 2/3 of these characteristics
- Non-cardiac chest pain meets 1/3 or 0/3 of these characteristics
Compare signs and symptoms of angina vs MI
- Angina due to exertion whereas MI is at rest
- Angina due to emotional stress whereas MI builds up over a few minutes
- Angina is worse in the cold
- Angina is relieved by rest or GTN (2-10 mins) whereas MI has no relief from rest/GTN and lasts 30mins+
- MI is associated with autonomic symptoms such as breathlessness, sweating and nausea
Explain what the HPC of a patient with pericarditis would be
- Sharp, stabbing chest pain
- Worse with inspiration
- Worse lying flat
- Eased by sitting up and NSAIDs
- Hours to days
Causes of pericarditis
- Infection
2. Pericardial infusion - with infection, malignancy, lymphoma
Explain what the HPC of a patient with aortic dissection would be
- Sudden onset
- Tearing, knife-like pain
- Excruciating
- Radiating to back
- Abdominal pain - may require opiate analgesia
- Often seen in ELDERLY population with HYPERTENSION
- Seen in people with stressful jobs with hypertension at a young age
Explain what the HPC of a patient with PE would be
- Pain over infarcted area
- Pleuritic pain (on inspiration)
- Associated with SOB
- Tachycardia/AF
- Tachypnoea