Heart attack or cardiac arrest? How to recognize the difference — and respond.

While heart attack and cardiac arrest are both life-threatening conditions, they have very different causes and treatments. But since responding quickly can save your or your loved one’s life, it’s important to understand the differences and recognize the signs.

What is a heart attack?

According to the American Heart Association, a heart attack happens every 40 seconds in the United States. With so much at stake — and the strong likelihood that you or someone you love will experience one — it’s important to understand what causes a heart attack and how to recognize the signs. 

Heart attacks are caused by blockages that stop blood from getting to your heart. Often caused by plaque buildup in the artery walls, or plaque deposits that break off and form clots, blockages can cause irreversible damage to heart tissue when they aren’t treated. In many cases though, knowing you need treatment is tricky since you can’t feel a clogged artery.

It’s also possible to have a heart attack and not know it. “Silent heart attacks” come with either no symptoms or symptoms that people don’t recognize as heart attack symptoms, like acid reflux or a pulled muscle — and they account for one out of every five heart attacks.

What are common heart attack symptoms?

Although a heart attack can feel different to different people, patients most commonly describe a feeling of pressure, squeezing, tightness, fullness or pain in the chest that lasts more than a few minutes. This pain can also extend beyond the chest to your arm, back, neck, jaw or stomach. 

Women in particular, report having a much different experience. Instead of the classic heart attack symptoms, they often describe feeling heightened anxiety, unexplained fatigue, nausea, vomiting and weakness — all of which are commonly mistaken for less life-threatening conditions like the flu.

Other signs of a heart attack can include having cold sweats, a very rapid heartbeat and shortness of breath.

What chronic conditions increase my risk of heart attack?

Several chronic medical conditions can affect your heart health:

• Diabetes can cause your blood vessels to stiffen and narrow
• High blood pressure can strain your heart muscle and cause it to thicken
• Kidney disease can cause your heart to work harder to pump blood
• Low-density lipoproteins (LDL) or “bad cholesterol” can create plaque that narrows your arteries

Obesity can play a significant role too, since it’s a common factor that contributes to many (if not all) of these related conditions.

Are heart attacks preventable?

Many factors can increase your risk of having a heart attack. And some, like age, gender and family history, can’t be changed. For example, men over 45 and women over 55 are more likely to experience a heart attack, as are people with family members who were diagnosed with cardiovascular disease earlier in life.

But the good news is there’s a lot you can do to improve your heart health and lower your heart attack risk. Some of these changes include eating well, getting more active and walking away from habits like drinking, smoking and vaping.

Stopping smoking, in particular, can reduce your risk for developing coronary heart disease by 50% in just one year, according to the American Heart Association.

As the state’s largest cardiovascular network, we make it easy for our patients to connect to heart, lung and vascular specialists close to home. If you think you might be at risk of developing a heart condition, take our free heart health risk assessment.

What is cardiac arrest?

Cardiac arrest causes roughly 450,000 deaths in the U.S. each year, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) — making it crucial we know as much as we can about how to reduce our risk as well as what we should do if we recognize signs of this medical emergency. 

Cardiac arrest is caused by an electrical issue of the heart that makes it stop beating suddenly. That means oxygenated blood can no longer flow through the body to critical organs like the brain. Surprisingly, half of all cardiac arrests happen to people who did not know they had a heart problem.

Cardiac arrest is not a heart attack, but heart attacks are a common cause of cardiac arrest. 

What are common cardiac arrest symptoms?

Signs of cardiac arrest can come on without warning. Some people also experience symptoms like chest pain, nausea and shortness of breath right before they arrest. Most often, however, a person may be in cardiac arrest if they:

• Aren’t breathing or are gasping for air
• Collapse suddenly and pass out
• Don’t have a pulse
• Don’t respond to shouting or shaking

Call 911 and begin CPR immediately if you’re with someone you believe is experiencing cardiac arrest. Also, check to see if a defibrillator is available. CPR helps keep oxygenated blood flowing through the body while AEDs restore a normal heart rhythm. Acting quickly can save the life of a person in cardiac arrest.

What chronic conditions increase my risk of cardiac arrest?

When it comes to cardiac arrest, age matters: Genetic conditions tend to account for most cardiac arrests in young people, while coronary heart disease and other heart conditions that develop over a lifetime tend to account for most cases in older adults.

Overall, though, irregular heart rhythms (arrhythmias) are the main cause of cardiac arrest. However, other severe infection can also be a culprit.

Most other contributing factors are behavior based, from binge drinking and heavy use of recreational drugs to heavy physical exertion. In fact, according to the NIH, up to 3 in 20 cardiac arrests are linked with alcohol use and 2 in 20 with vigorous physical exertion — especially in athletes or weekend warriors with underlying conditions such as cardiomyopathy, conduction disorders and long QT syndrome.

It's also worth mentioning that while regular physical activity helps lower the risk of cardiac arrest, vigorous physical activity for people (especially men) who don’t exercise regularly can trigger a serious cardiac event.

Is cardiac arrest preventable?

It is possible to lower your risk of heart disease, which in turn lowers your risk for cardiac arrest. Making simple lifestyle changes — like increasing your physical activity, following a heart healthy diet and limiting your use of alcohol — are a great first step. Understanding your family history, especially any history of abnormal heart rhythm, also helps.

Regular check-ins with your doctor about your overall health are a good next line of defense. Your primary care physician can help you stay on top of your “numbers” and manage your weight, physical activity, diet, blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol when needed. Also keep in mind that if medications are part of your health care plan, taking them as directed will help lower your risk of developing heart-related complications.

What should I do if someone is having a heart attack or is in cardiac arrest?

If you’re with someone who is experiencing a heart attack or cardiac arrest, call 911 right away. Performing CPR or using an automated external defibrillator (AED) can also help sustain them until first responders arrive. CPR helps keep oxygenated blood flowing through the body while AEDs restore a normal heart rhythm. 

The sooner a person gets to the hospital, the faster trained providers can confirm a heart attack or cardiac arrest. In the case of a heart attack, they can begin emergency treatment to remove the blockage and restore blood flow throughout the heart. 

Better heart health is just a call away

Concerned about your heart health? Our cardiovascular referral line connects you with trusted heart doctors who provide compassionate care. Get connected with a cardiologist at HCA Florida Healthcare when you call (833) 544-5031.