Symptoms of heart disease and stroke should not be ignored and require urgent medical attention. Recognizing the early signs of a heart attack or stroke can help a person survive and decrease damage to the brain.
Significance
According to the National Center for Health Statistics, heart attacks and strokes caused the deaths of more than 800,000 Americans in 2005.
Types
Early symptoms that a stroke is occurring include a sudden headache, dizziness, trouble walking, difficulty speaking or understanding words, vision problems and numbness on one side of the body.
Types
Heart attack warning signs may include breathing problems, pain in the jaw, neck, arm, stomach or chest, heartburn, irregular heartbeat, nausea or vomiting and fainting.
Features
Symptoms of stroke may be sudden and only occur once the stroke has begun. Symptoms of a heart attack may not be obvious and can differ by the strength of the heart attack.
Considerations
According to the Mayo Clinic, warning signs of a heart attack may differ in men and women, and women are less likely than men to have obvious signs like pain in the chest.
Time Frame
Warning signs of heart disease and stroke may build up over time, while others are sudden and last only a few minutes. Treatment for certain types of strokes must be started within three hours of when symptoms started.
Warning
Warning signs of stroke or heart attack should not be ignored because the sooner a person with a stroke or heart attack is treated, the less likely they are to have significant damage or die as a result.
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