Common questions / 03/09/2020

Can heart attacks happen at any age?

Heart disease doesn’t happen just to older adults. It is happening to younger adults more and more often. This is partly because the conditions that lead to heart disease are happening at younger ages.

Can someone in their 20s have a heart attack?

While strokes, heart attacks and other cardiac conditions tend to appear in people over 60, 20-somethings should stay vigilant with their heart health too. In fact, heart disease affects 1 in 10 Americans between 20 to 39 years old.

Can 16 year olds get heart attacks?

So, yes, kids and teens can get heart disease and have heart attacks, although it’s very rare and often a result of congenital heart defects. Still, young people in otherwise good health can start on the road to poor heart health without proper guidance.

Can a person have a heart attack without having any symptoms?

During a heart attack, symptoms last 30 minutes or longer and are not relieved by rest or nitroglycerin under the tongue. Some people have a heart attack without having any symptoms (a “silent” myocardial infarction). A silent MI can occur in anyone, but it is more common among people with diabetes.

How often do Americans have a heart attack?

The more time that passes without treatment to restore blood flow, the greater the damage to the heart muscle. Learn more about the signs and symptoms of a heart attack. Every year, about 790,000 Americans have a heart attack.

What does it mean when you have a heart attack?

A heart attack, also called a myocardial infarction, occurs when a part of the heart muscle doesn’t receive enough blood flow. The more time that passes without treatment to restore blood flow, the greater the damage to the heart muscle. Learn more about the signs and symptoms of a heart attack.

Can a young person have a heart attack?

In The Media. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is usually a non-ischemic disease of the heart. When sufferers, young or old, collapse with a sudden cardiac arrest then that is not a “heart attack”. Heart attacks usually result from a myocardial infarction in the latter stages of ischemic heart disease.

Is it possible to have a heart attack and not know it?

About half of all heart attacks are mistaken for less serious problems and can increase your risk of dying from coronary artery disease. You can have a heart attack and not even know it. A silent heart attack, known as a silent myocardial infarction (SMI), account for 45% of heart attacks and strike men more than women.

What are the signs and symptoms of a heart attack?

There are five major signs and symptoms of a heart attack in women and men. There are five major signs and symptoms of a heart attack in women and men. What is a heart attack? A heart attack, also called a myocardial infarction, happens when a part of the heart muscle doesn’t get enough blood.

How old do you have to be to have a heart attack?

A study in the Nov. 10, 2015, Journal of the American Medical Association looked at almost 2,000 people ages 45 to 84 (half of whom were men) who were free of cardiovascular disease. After 10 years, 8% had myocardial scars, which are evidence of a heart attack. Most surprising was that 80% of these people were unaware of their condition.