Rest Angina Symptoms
Rest Angina pain attacks occur when a person is fully physically relaxed and lying in bed, often during sleep or at an early morning hour, and characterized by:
- Sudden attack - forces patient to wake up because of a strong feeling of suffocation or chest being squeezed;
- Attacks occur during the rapid eye movement (REM) sleep when having dreams, which may account for patients reporting that, in their dreams, they had to run fast or lift weights.
Unstable Angina attack is accompanied with:
- Increased anxiety state;
- Restlessness;
- Fear of death.
The pain syndrome in Rest Angina is extremely intense and localized in the breastbone. The pain is squeezing or pressing by nature, spreading to the jaw, shoulder blade and left arm. Severe pain makes a patient freeze in one position. The attack of Unstable Angina lasts longer (5-15 minutes) and is more severe than that of Angina of Effort.
The following evident vegetative reactions develop at the onset of the attack:
- Tachycardia
- Rise in blood pressure;
- Panting;
- Sweating;
- Sudden pallor;
- Nausea;
- Dizziness.
In most cases, nocturnal episodes of Unstable Angina are accompanied with the Angina of Effort attacks induced by physical activity during a day.
Next chapter: Tests and diagnosis of rest angina
