DISCLAIMER: Do NOT accept this as medical advice. Please consult your physician.
Ok, now that I got the disclaimer out of the way, let me add my 2 cents. I'm a physician and although I don't do clinical medicine, I still know a little
You guys are freaking the poor guy out!! There is nothing but hysteria and lots of false information here.
Risk factors for coronary artery disease: male sex, age, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, history of prior heart attack and family history. There are other "soft" risk factors as well. In young people, cocaine and amphetamine use place you at risk for heart attacks.
You're young and your cholesterol is normal. So first thing first. The odds of you having coronary artery disease is low. Especially if you don't have any of the above risk factors. (yeah, better quit smoking and doing drugs!) This should reassure you somewhat.
The symptoms of a heart attack are substernal chest pain/pressure that is caused by exertion and relieved with rest/nitrates. This pain can radiate to the arms, jaw and neck (due to common neural pathways). May be associated with nausea/vomiting, lightheadedness, shortness of breath and sweating. Usually gradual onset of symptoms in increasing intensity. A heart attack should last 15 minutes to an hour. Sometimes, you won't feel any symptoms at all (silent myocardial infarction).
DISCLAIMER: Do NOT accept this as medical advice. Please consult your physician.
Some other things that may cause chest pain
1. Costochondritis: inflammation of the ribs-cartilage (costochrondral joints with localized pain). Hurts when the area is pressed or touched. Exacerbated by movement, deep breathing and improved by opposite. Most likely caused by repetitive minor trauma/activity.
2. Pneumonia. Fever, cough, phlegm (sometimes blood-tinged), shortness of breath, pain with inspiration.
3. Gastroesophageal reflux disease. "Heartburn"
4. Pericarditis. Inflammation of the lining around your heart. Sometimes occurs following viral infections, autoimmune disease, TB to name a few.
5. Pulmonary embolism. A blood clot gets dislodged and sent to the pulmonary circulation. Some risk factors: being on oral contraceptives; clotting disorder; immobility or recent fractures.
6. Aortic dissection. A layer of the aorta separates from the rest of the blood vessel. Tearing pain that travels. Think John Ritter.
7. Pneumothorax. Air sacs get busted and the air escapes into your thoracic cavity.
8. Many other.
When you mention chest pain, the potentially lethal ones are MI, pulmonary embolism, aortic dissection and pneumothorax.
ASPIRIN is ASPIRIN is ASPIRIN. Bayer has a nice trademark and is widely recognized for aspirin. But ANY aspirin will do. For people over age 50
without any contraindications, it is advisable to take a baby aspirin (81mg) daily.
Whenever you have a bout of chest pain that is concerning for a heart attack, take 2 of the baby aspirins or a regular one and immediately seek medical attention. If you have sublingual nitroglycerin, take that as well.
DISCLAIMER: Do NOT accept this as medical advice. Please consult your physician.
If you have question about your chest pain, see your physician. He/she can always do an EKG, which is a rapid and cheap diagnostic to see if you have any history of a heart attack. You can then be referred to a cardiologist.
When people freak out and order all sorts of tests, you can suddenly find yourself with a very expensive medical bill. If everyone with chest pain get this done, our medical system would go broke. These tests can be very expensive and make cardiologists pretty darn rich.
To the guy with the echocardiogram above: Sounded pretty normal to me...but I defer to your primary physician
DISCLAIMER: Do NOT accept this as medical advice. Please consult your physician.