Angina Pectoris is a symptom of coronary artery disease or in other terms a sign of future heart attack. This life threatening disease is increasing at a fast pace throughout the world due to nutritional disorder and lack of regular exercise, particularly in the affluent group of people. This disease is a clinical syndrome which results from lack of blood supply to heart muscles. During the course of attack of angina pectoris, the patient experiences chest pain with heaviness, pressure, tightness, suffocation, choking or squeezing.The typical discomfort is substernal in location. The attack of angina pectoris occurs during physical or emotional stress and is relieved by rest.
The syndrome of this disease might occur due to fright, hurrying, shock, excitement, anger, violence, sexual activities, walking against the wind, walking uphill, walking on ramps as well as by having heavy meals and during exercise. Angina might also occur during or after eating, exposure to cold temperature or to wind. The main cause of occurrences of angina is only when the workload on the heart is increased and further the most common cause of angina is due to the accumulation of atheroma (fatty deposits 'cholesterol') inside the blood vessels wall, which leads to obstruction in the normal flow of blood to the heart.
Symptoms of Angina Pectoris
Angina is chest discomfort that occurs when there is decreased supply of blood to an area of the heart muscle. In most of the cases, lack of blood supply is due to a narrowing of the coronary arteries due to arteriosclerosis. Angina is generally felt as:
• Heaviness
• Pressure
• Tightening
• Squeezing or
• Aching across the chest, especially behind the breastbone
Types of Angina
Stable Angina
This is the most common type of angina. People having this type of angina have angina symptoms on regular basis and the symptoms are predictable. It's commonly induced by exercise or activities such as walking or running. The pain in the chest generally resolves after taking rest for a while. The pain generally lasts for 3 to 5 minutes and it can radiate to other parts of the body such as the back, arms and the shoulders.
Unstable Angina
Unlike stable angina, it's not triggered by physical activities. This type of angina is more severe than the stable form and can occur even while taking rest. The pain in the chest can last for 10 to 15 minutes and cannot be treated by rest or medications. It also doesn't follow a regular predictable pattern and at times can be an indicator of an imminent heart attack.
Variant Angina
This type of condition is typically known as Prinzmetal's angina. It can occur while you're resting or sleeping. The pain caused by this condition can be alleviated by taking the necessary medications. It occurs generally between midnight and morning.
Homeopathic Treatment
Angina can be easily resolved using homeopathy and it's important to consult a professional homeopath as the treatment can be somewhat complicated. There are several homeopathic medicines that resolve this condition. Homeopathy treats the person as a whole and not the disease as it's mentioned in its principle.