Chest pain is a common symptom and can be caused by many reasons, mainly due to lesions in the chest wall, pleura, lung, cardiovascular, mediastinum, esophagus and diaphragm, intercostal nerve and other parts. The diagnosis of chest pain in the elderly is difficult due to the dullness of pain sensation and atypical clinical manifestations. Therefore, chest pain in the elderly should be distinguished and identified according to the nature of chest pain, accompanying symptoms and the location and time of occurrence, and chest pain in the elderly should not be taken lightly. Common causes and characteristics of chest pain: 1, chest pain caused by chest wall disorders: mainly caused by lesions of chest wall muscles, ribs or intercostal nerves, the main feature is that pain is often fixed in the lesion site, and local pressure points are obvious. For example: intercostal neuralgia, chest pain caused by herpes zoster in the chest and abdomen. 2, chest pain caused by lesions of trachea, bronchus, lung and pleura: the main characteristic pain is often associated with whistling and coughing. Such as spontaneous pneumothorax, pleurisy, pulmonary infarction and other lung diseases. 3, chest pain caused by diseases of the digestive system, such as: cholecystitis, cholelithiasis, acute pancreatitis, gastric and duodenal diseases cause pain in the lower part of the anterior chest, but generally have gastrointestinal symptoms. 4, chest pain caused by the circulatory system: the elderly often have hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, etc., and coronary heart disease is more common. (1) Chest pain caused by angina attack, characterized by a feeling of strangulation, pressure or fear in the left anterior chest or behind the sternum, the attack is usually about 2-3 minutes, and can be relieved after containing drugs such as nitroglycerin. (2) Chest pain caused by myocardial infarction, in addition to the above manifestations, may also radiate in the left shoulder, the left inner arm, and sometimes to the chin, neck, and even the upper abdomen.
The pain has a sense of tightness, is intense and lasts for more than 30 minutes, and is not relieved significantly after taking nitroglycerin and other drugs. (3) In aortic coarctation, tearing-like pain can occur in the back of the chest and the pain is severe, which is not relieved by general drugs and the condition is more critical. If the above symptoms occur, you should go to the hospital in time to have electrocardiogram examination, blood pressure and pulse detection, and if necessary, biochemical markers such as troponin and chest CT examination to clarify the cause of chest pain so that timely treatment can be carried out. There are many serious diseases that cause chest pain and should be recognized in time to differentiate them so that necessary preventive or emergency measures can be taken. Special attention should be paid to chest pain in elderly people, and they should go to the nearest hospital cardiovascular specialist at the first time to do relevant examinations to clarify their conditions and to diagnose and treat them in time.