Everyone Healthy Library
Myocardial Infarction
Also Known As: Acute Coronary Syndrome; Acute Myocardial Infarction; Heart Attack
Condition / disease reference page from the Everyone Healthy database.
! Seek urgent medical care if warning signs appear
Some health conditions or symptoms can become urgent. Use this page for education, but seek help quickly if warning signs are present.
Get urgent medical care now if there is any severe, sudden, rapidly worsening or worrying symptom, especially:
- chest pain, pressure or pain spreading to the arm, jaw or back
- trouble breathing, blue lips, severe wheeze or choking
- stroke-like symptoms such as face drooping, arm weakness or speech trouble
- collapse, fainting, seizure, confusion or extreme drowsiness
- severe bleeding, black stools, vomiting blood or major injury
- severe allergic reaction, swelling of the face/throat or widespread rash with breathing trouble
- severe abdominal pain, severe headache, stiff neck or sudden vision change
- signs of severe dehydration, sepsis, high fever with worsening illness, or symptoms in a baby/young child that concern you
Connected health information
Explore this condition in a clear order
Linked signs and symptoms
20Each sign/symptom opens its own page and links back to related conditions.
- Breath Shortness (Dyspnoea)
- Dizziness
- Fainting (Syncope)
- Fatigue
- Headache (Cephalgia)
- Heartbeats Felt By Patient (Palpitations)
- Heartburn (Pyrosis)
- Loss of Consciousness (Unconsciousness)
- Mind: Lightheadedness
- Mind: Malaise
- Nausea
- Pain Arm
- Pain Back
- Pain in Upper Abdomen (Epigastric Burning)
- Pain Jaw
- Pain Neck
- Pain: Chest
- Sweating (Perspiring)
- Vomiting
- Weakness
Linked drugs / medications
17Medication information is educational only. A doctor or pharmacist should advise whether any medicine is appropriate.
Treatments, therapies and supportive options
35Grouped by treatment type. These are educational database links, not personal treatment recommendations. Evidence labels are shown only where stored in the EH database.
Surgery
4Medical therapy
8- Cardiac Defibrillator ImplantWeakly in Favour(Low Evidence)
- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)Weakly in Favour(Low Evidence)
- Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG)Weakly in Favour(Low Evidence)
- Electical Cardioversion (Defibrillation)Weakly in Favour(Low Evidence)
- Expired Air ResuscitationWeakly in Favour(Low Evidence)
- Oxygen AdministrationWeakly in Favour(Low Evidence)
- Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI)Weakly in Favour(Low Evidence)
- SEEK IMMEDIATE PROFESSIONAL HELPStrongly in Favour(Moderate Evidence)
Lifestyle changes
10- Increase Fruit and Vegetable Consumption
- Low Fat Diet
- Low Sodium or Salt Diet
- Reduce or Stop Alcohol Consumption
- Reduce or Stop Alcohol ConsumptionStrongly in Favour(High Evidence)
- Reduce or Stop Smoking
- Reduce or Stop SmokingStrongly in Favour(High Evidence)
- Regular Excercise
- Weight Reduction
- Weight ReductionStrongly in Favour(High Evidence)
Counselling and support
1Alternative and complementary therapies
4Alternative medicine
2Alternative therapies
1Medical emergencies
4Linked diagnostic tests and investigations
31These are pulled from both EH diagnostic-test link tables, including the older large test-link table.
- 2,3 Diphosphoglycerate (2,3-DPG) Concentration
- Aldosterone Concentration Test
- Apolipoprotein A Concentration
- Blood Urea Nitrogen Tests
- Blood Uric Acid Concentration Test
- Carbon Monoxide (CO) Concentration
- Cholesterol Concentration
- Cholinesterase (Serum Acetylcholinesterase, Pseudocholinesterase)
- Creatine Kinase Concentration
- D-Dimer Blood Test
- Eosinophils Count
- erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR)
- Ferritin Concentration
- Fibrin Degradation Products (FDPs, Fibrin Split Products, FSPs, Fibrin Breakdown Products, Fbps)
- Fibrin Monomers Test
- Fibrinogen Concentration test
- Fibrinopeptide A (FPA) Action Assay
- Gamma-Glutamyltransferase (GGT) Concentration
- Glucose 6 Phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6PD) Concentration
- Glucose, Blood (Fasting Blood Glucose)
- Glucose, Blood (Random Blood Glucose Test)
- haptoglobin (Hp) concentration
- Homocysteine Concentration (HCY, Blood)
- Lactate Dehydrogenase Concentration
- Myoglobin Concentration
- Neutrophil Absolute Count
- Partial Pressure of Arterial Carbon Dioxide (PCO2, PaCO2)
- Platelet Count
- Protein Electrophoresis (Blood, Serum Protein)
- Triglyceride (TGs) Concentration
- Urine Volume
Biological markers/agents
34This visual map shows biological markers/agents reported as increased or decreased with this condition. These are educational relationships only; test results must be interpreted by a qualified clinician because ranges vary by lab, method, age, sex and clinical context.
Often increased
29- 2,3 Diphosphoglycerate (2,3-DPG)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 10.5–14 µmol/gLinked diagnostic tests2, 3 Diphosphoglycerate (2
- AldosteroneReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 0.13–0.86 nmol/L; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 0.16–0.66 nmol/LLinked diagnostic testsAldosterone Concentration Test
- Alpha-1-Globulin (Blood, Serum)Reference range exampleAll: 0.1–0.3 gm/dLLinked diagnostic testsProtein Electrophoresis (Blood, Serum Protein)
- Alpha-2-Globulin (Blood, Serum)Reference range exampleAll: 0.6–1 gm/dLLinked diagnostic testsProtein Electrophoresis (Blood, Serum Protein)
- Blood Urea NitrogenReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 6–18 mg/dL; Child (< 10y): 5–15 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testsBlood Urea Nitrogen Tests
- Carbon Monoxide (CO)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 0–1.5 %Linked diagnostic testsCarbon Monoxide (CO) Concentration
- Cholesterol (Total)Reference range exampleInfant (0 - 1y): 75–180 mg/dL; Adult ( > 16y): 0–190 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testsCholesterol Concentration
- Creatine Kinase (CK)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 35–150 units/L; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 40–170 units/LLinked diagnostic testsCreatine Kinase Concentration
- Creatine Kinase2 (CK-MB) IsoenzymeReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 0–2 %Linked diagnostic testsCreatine Kinase Concentration
- Creatine Kinase3 (CK-MM) IsoenzymeReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 97–100 %Linked diagnostic testsCreatine Kinase Concentration
- D-DimerReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 0–240 µg/LLinked diagnostic testsD-Dimer Blood Test
- EosinophilsReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 0–3 %; 0–3 %Linked diagnostic testsDifferential White Blood Cell Count Tests, Eosinophil Differential Of Total WBC
- Erythrocyte Sedimentation RateReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 0–20 mm/Hr; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 0–15 mm/HrLinked diagnostic testserythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR)
- FerritinReference range exampleChild (0 - 16y): 7–140 µg/L; Adult ( > 16y), Female: 18–160 µg/LLinked diagnostic testsFerritin Concentration
- Fibrin MonomersReference range example0–10,000 µg/LLinked diagnostic testsFibrin Monomers Test
- Fibrin Split ProductsReference range exampleAll: 0–1 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testsFibrin Degradation Products (FDPs, Fibrin Split Products
- FibrinogenReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 150–400 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testsFibrinogen Concentration test
- Fibrinopeptide A (FPA)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 0.7–3.1 mg/mL; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 0.35–2.5 mg/mLLinked diagnostic testsFibrinopeptide A (FPA) Action Assay
- Gamma-Glutamyltransferase (GGT)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 6–30 units/L; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 6–38 units/LLinked diagnostic testsGamma-Glutamyltransferase (GGT) Concentration
- Glucose (Blood)Reference range exampleInfant (0 - 1y): 3–6.1 mmol/L; Adult ( > 16y): 0–6.1 mmol/LLinked diagnostic testsfasting Blood Glucose Test, Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT
- Glucose 6 Phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6PD)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 10.1–18.5 U/gHb; Birth - 2wks: 12–23 U/gHbLinked diagnostic testsGlucose 6 Phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6PD) Concentration
- haptoglobin (Hp)Reference range example45–200 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testshaptoglobin (Hp) concentration
- HomocysteineReference range exampleAll, Female: 4–15 µmol/L; All, Male: 7–16 µmol/LLinked diagnostic testsHomocysteine Concentration (HCY, Blood)
- Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH)Reference range exampleInfant (0 - 1y): 120–250 units/L; Adult ( > 16y): 100–200 units/LLinked diagnostic testsLactate Dehydrogenase Concentration
- MyoglobinReference range exampleAll: 5–85 ng/mLLinked diagnostic testsMyoglobin Concentration
- PlateletsReference range exampleChild (0 - 16y): 150–450 109/L; Adult ( > 16y): 135–380 109/LLinked diagnostic testsPlatelet Count
- Segmented NeutrophilsReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 50–62 %; Adult ( > 16y): 2,500–8,000 mm3Linked diagnostic testsDifferential White Blood Cell Count Tests, Neutrophil Absolute Count
- TriglyceridesReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 32–137 mg/dL; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 35–155 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testsTriglyceride (TG's) Concentration, Triglyceride (TGs) Concentration
- Uric Acid, BloodReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 2.5–7 mg/dL; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 4–8 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testsBlood Uric Acid Concentration Test
Often decreased
5- Albumin (Blood)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 37–52 gm/dL; Infant (0 - 1y): 4.4–5.4 gm/dLLinked diagnostic testsBlood Albumin Concentration, Protein Electrophoresis (Blood
- Apolipoprotein A (Apo A)Reference range exampleAdult ( > 16y), Female: 85–170 mg/dL; Adult ( > 16y), Male: 77–155 mg/dLLinked diagnostic testsApolipoprotein A Concentration
- CholinesteraseReference range exampleAll: 6–19 U/mLLinked diagnostic testsCholinesterase (Serum Acetylcholinesterase, Pseudocholinesterase)
- Partial Pressure of Arterial Carbon Dioxide (PaCO2)Reference range exampleAll: 35–45 mm HgLinked diagnostic testsPartial Pressure of Arterial Carbon Dioxide (PCO2, PaCO2)
- UrineReference range exampleAdult ( > 16y): 4.5–7.5; Child (0 - 16y): 500–1,400 mLLinked diagnostic testsUrine Colour, Urine Creatinine Concentration
Introduction / full article
Myocardial Infarction
Efficacy of Alternative and Other Treatments According to GRADE* Ranking:
Pine Bark Extract [1, 2, 3, 4,]:
Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.
Recommendation: weakly in favor (Early studies indicate potential for Pine bark extract in the treatment of infarctions, but more clinical studies need to be done)
Grade of Evidence: low quality of evidence
Red Pepper (Capsaicin):
Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It is proposed only as a weak supportive symptomatic support, and even then, has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.
Recommendation: no recommendation (Available evidence does not support claims that Red Peppers help to treat or prevent myocardial infarctions in any way)
Grade of Evidence: low quality of evidence
Astragalus (Astragalus Membranaceus):
Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It is proposed only as a weak supportive symptomatic support, and even then, has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.
Recommendation: no recommendation (There is insufficient evidence to support claims that Astragalus helps to treat mycardial infarction)
Grade of Evidence: very low quality of evidence
Qigong:
Recommendation: no recommendation (there is insufficient evidence to show that Qigong can help treat Angina in any way)
Grade of Evidence: very low quality of evidence
* www.gradeworkinggroup.org
Summary References
Treatments:
1. Ades T, Alteri R, Gansler T, Yeargin P, "Complete Guide to Complimentary & Alternative Cancer Therapies", American Cancer Society, Atlanta USA, 2009
2. http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct/show/NCT00214032
3. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/pine-bark-extract
4. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/patient-pycnogenol.html