Why do diabetics not feel heart attacks?

High blood sugar, high blood pressure and cholesterol problems raise risk for heart events, but nerve damage can make warning signs of an attack impossible to feel. “People with diabetes may have an impaired perception of chest pain, a key symptom that compels people to go to the hospital,” he says.
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Could a diabetic patient have no pain with a heart attack?

Diabetes can affect your nerves and make heart attacks painless or “silent.” A silent heart attack means that you may not have any warning signs, or they may be very mild. Your health care provider might need to do special tests to see whether you've had a heart attack.
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Can diabetics feel a heart attack?

It's called a silent heart attack. It can happen to anyone, but diabetes makes you more likely to have one. You might not feel anything at all. Or it could feel mild, like heartburn or the odd ache or pain.
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How do you tell if a diabetic is having a heart attack?

Diabetes-related heart attack symptoms
  • Chest pain or a feeling of fullness.
  • Nausea.
  • Heartburn.
  • Unusual fatigue.
  • Pain in your jaw, neck or left arm — particularly for women.
  • Shortness of breath without much exertion.
  • Light-headedness.
  • Sweating or clammy hands without exertion.
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Why do diabetics have silent MI?

SMI is a common occurrence and appears to occur with increased frequency in patients with diabetes, likely as a result of cardiac autonomic dysfunction.
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Dr. David Samadi - How Does Diabetes Cause Silent Heart Attacks?



Why is diabetes called the silent killer?

Why is diabetes called “The Silent Killer”? Because in many cases, people do not know that they have diabetes since it can take a long time before symptoms appear.
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Can diabetes weaken your heart?

Over time, high blood sugar can damage blood vessels and the nerves that control your heart. People with diabetes are also more likely to have other conditions that raise the risk for heart disease: High blood pressure increases the force of blood through your arteries and can damage artery walls.
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What organ does diabetes attack first?

Glucose, or blood sugar, is the main energy source for the human body. It comes from the food people eat. The hormone insulin helps the cells of the body convert glucose into fuel. In type 1 diabetes, the body's immune system attacks cells in the pancreas and stops them from making insulin.
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What is silent diabetes?

“Diabetes starts as a silent disease, advancing painlessly, almost imperceptibly,” says Dr. Ferrer, who sees 25 to 30 diabetic patients per week. “It mainly attacks the small blood vessels, damaging the kidneys, eyes, and nerves.” It can also affect larger blood vessels.
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Can someone have a silent heart attack?

A silent heart attack is a heart attack that has few, if any, symptoms or has symptoms not recognized as a heart attack. A silent heart attack might not cause chest pain or shortness of breath, which are typically associated with a heart attack.
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How do you know if you've had a silent heart attack?

Shortness of breath can occur with or without chest pain, and it's a common sign of a silent heart attack. You may also feel dizzy or lightheaded — and it's possible you could faint. Though this can happen to both men and women, it's more common for women to experience shortness of breath.
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What are the signs a month before a heart attack?

6 Signs of Heart Attack a Month Before
  • Fatigue. Seventy percent of women experience fatigue, and if it is not a regular occurrence for you, it may be one of the primary signs of an imminent heart attack. ...
  • Dizziness. ...
  • Abdominal pain. ...
  • Sweating. ...
  • Swelling in Legs, Ankles, and Feet. ...
  • Heart Palpitations.
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How does diabetes cause sudden cardiac death?

Impairment of tissue insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetes is a significant factor for sudden cardiac death. The complex pathophysiology stems from coexisting cardiovascular disease and complications of impaired tissue sensitivity to insulin.
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Do diabetics feel chest pain?

If you have prediabetes or type 1 or type 2 diabetes, you should be aware of the symptoms of heart disease, including: Chest pain, also known as angina, including feelings of chest tightness or pressure.
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What happens in silent attack?

A silent heart attack happens when the flow of blood is blocked in the coronary arteries by a build up of plaque. Studies differ, but some suggest that silent heart attacks are more common in women than in men.
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What organ is diabetes hard on?

Over time, poorly controlled diabetes can cause damage to blood vessel clusters in your kidneys that filter waste from your blood. This can lead to kidney damage and cause high blood pressure. High blood pressure can cause further kidney damage by increasing the pressure in the delicate filtering system of the kidneys.
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Which sensation is lost first in diabetes?

The first clinical sign that usually develops in diabetic symmetrical sensorimotor polyneuropathy is decrease or loss of vibratory and pinprick sensation over the toes.
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How long can you live with diabetes?

People With Diabetes Can Live Longer by Meeting Their Treatment Goals. Life expectancy can be increased by 3 years or in some cases as much as 10 years. At age 50, life expectancy- the number of years a person is expected to live- is 6 years shorter for people with type 2 diabetes than for people without it.
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How do you know if your heart is OK?

An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a test that records the electrical activity of the heart. The ECG reflects what's happening in different areas of the heart and helps identify any problems with the rhythm or rate of your heart. The ECG is painless and takes around 5-10 minutes to perform.
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What is the most common cause of death in type 1 diabetes?

Heart and kidney disease are the main causes of death in people with type 1 diabetes.
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Does insulin prevent heart attacks?

Drug for insulin resistance prevents stroke and heart attack in high-risk patients. A drug designed to treat insulin resistance reduced the risk of stroke and heart attack in non-diabetic patients who had experienced a recent stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA), a new study shows.
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Does diabetes clog your arteries?

Diabetes & Blood Sugar

Over time, high levels of glucose can build up in the bloodstream, causing atherosclerosis – a condition in which narrowing or blockage occurs in the arteries. This leads to reduced levels of blood and oxygen reaching the tissues and organs, causing further harm to the body.
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What is the blood pressure of diabetes?

”Most people with diabetes should have a blood pressure of no more than 130/80. To achieve this, many diabetics need to take hypertension medications. “Some hypertension are more useful in the treatment of diabetes, especially diabetes resulting from kidney disease,” explains Dr.
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