Everyone needs to recognize the early symptoms of heart disease in order to be aware of them. Do not let you ignore these symptoms until finally a new heart disease is found in a condition that is already severe enough and more difficult to treat.
Early symptoms of heart disease may vary from person to person. Symptoms will also depend on the type of heart disease experienced. In some cases, the early symptoms of heart disease don't even seem so bothersome.
Even so, there are some early symptoms that can be used as a warning sign that your heart is in trouble. By knowing these early symptoms, you can take steps to handle it as early as possible, so that heart disease can be treated better.
Some Early Symptoms of Heart Disease
The following are some of the early symptoms of heart disease that you need to be aware of:
1. Chest pain
Chest pain or angina pectoris is the most common early symptom of coronary heart disease. Symptoms of chest pain can vary from person to person. Some people may feel like something heavy is hitting their chest, while others may feel like their chest is burning.
Chest pain can occur when the heart muscle doesn't get enough oxygen. In the early stages of heart disease, these symptoms may only appear when the body's oxygen demand is increasing, for example when exercising or experiencing emotional stress, and will disappear with rest for about 5–10 minutes.
2. Tired more easily
Feeling tired is probably a normal thing that happens after you do strenuous physical activity. However, when the tiredness suddenly appears for no apparent reason and is worse than usual fatigue, it could be an early symptom of heart disease.
3. Shortness of breath
Shortness of breath is something that is very normal if it occurs after doing strenuous activities, such as exercising. However, if shortness of breath occurs after light activity, this may be an early symptom of heart disease. So, do not occasionally underestimate this symptom.
4. Irregular heartbeat
Early symptoms of heart disease can also be in the form of a heartbeat that feels abnormal at times, for example, the arrival of the heartbeat feels too late or suddenly there is a beat that slips between 2 normal heartbeats.
This condition generally occurs due to excess coffee drinking or lack of sleep. However, you need to be careful if these symptoms are felt too often for no apparent reason.
5. Swelling in the instep and ankle
Swelling in the legs can also be an early symptom of heart disease. This condition occurs when the heart does not pump blood optimally, so that blood flow throughout the body and blood flow back to the heart becomes blocked.
In the early stages of the disease, retained blood in the legs can lead to fluid buildup which is generally evident in the backs of the feet and ankles. But over time, swelling can occur throughout the body.
Some of the early symptoms of heart disease above can become more severe if the heart condition is also getting worse. Here are the signs:
- Chest pain becomes more frequent and occurs even at rest
- Weight gain drastically due to swelling throughout the body (anasarca edema)
- Persistent cough that produces white or pink mucus
- Heartbeats feel increasingly irregular, even to the point of causing fainting
Those are a series of early symptoms of heart disease that you need to be aware of. If you experience some of these symptoms, avoid doing self diagnosis and immediately consult a doctor to get the right treatment, to prevent further more serious symptoms.