
Get answers to your heart disease prevention questions.
Dr. Miller’s Bio | Q&A Archive
Coronary artery disease; Arteriosclerotic heart disease; CHD; CAD
Symptoms may be very noticeable, but sometimes you can have the disease and not have any symptoms.
Chest pain or discomfort (angina) is the most common symptom. You feel this pain when the heart is not getting enough blood or oxygen. How bad the pain is varies from person to person.
There are two main types of chest pain:
Adults with typical chest pain have a higher risk of CHD than those with atypical chest pain.
Other symptoms include:
Many tests help diagnose CHD. Usually, your doctor will order more than one test before making a definite diagnosis.
Tests may include:
Mosca L, Banka CL, Benjamin EJ, et al. Evidence-Based Guidelines for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Women: 2007 Update. Circulation. 2007; Published online before print February 19, 2007.
Smith SC Jr, Allen J, Blair SN, et al. AHA/ACC guidelines for secondary prevention for patients with coronary and other atherosclerotic vascular disease: 2006 update: endorsed by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Circulation. 2006 May 16;113(19):2363-72. Erratum in: Circulation. 2006 Jun 6;113(22):e847.
Boden WE, O'rourke RA, Teo KK, et al. Optimal Medical Therapy with or without PCI for Stable Coronary Disease. N Engl J Med. 2007 Mar 26; [Epub ahead of print].
American Heart Association. Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics — 2007 Update. Dallas, Texas: American Heart Association; 2007.