Chest pain

Potential location of pain from a heart attack
A blockage of coronary arteries can lead to a heart attack
Gastroesophageal reflux disease is a common cause of chest pain in adults

Pain or discomfort in the chest, typically the front of the chest.

- Chest pain
Potential location of pain from a heart attack

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X-ray showing radiocontrast from the stomach (white material below diaphragm) entering the esophagus (three vertical collections of white material in the mid-line of the chest) due to severe reflux

Gastroesophageal reflux disease

Chronic condition in which stomach contents and acid rise up into the esophagus, resulting in symptoms and/or complications.

Chronic condition in which stomach contents and acid rise up into the esophagus, resulting in symptoms and/or complications.

X-ray showing radiocontrast from the stomach (white material below diaphragm) entering the esophagus (three vertical collections of white material in the mid-line of the chest) due to severe reflux
Frontal view of severe tooth erosion in GERD.
Severe tooth erosion in GERD.
A comparison of a healthy condition to GERD
Endoscopic image of peptic stricture, or narrowing of the esophagus near the junction with the stomach: This is a complication of chronic gastroesophageal reflux disease and can be a cause of dysphagia or difficulty swallowing.

Symptoms include the taste of acid in the back of the mouth, heartburn, bad breath, chest pain, regurgitation, breathing problems, and wearing away of the teeth.

Chest X-ray of a pneumonia caused by influenza and Haemophilus influenzae, with patchy consolidations, mainly in the right upper lobe (arrow)

Pneumonia

Inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli.

Inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli.

Chest X-ray of a pneumonia caused by influenza and Haemophilus influenzae, with patchy consolidations, mainly in the right upper lobe (arrow)
Main symptoms of infectious pneumonia
The bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae, a common cause of pneumonia, imaged by an electron microscope
Cavitating pneumonia due to MRSA as seen on a CT scan
A chest x-ray of a patient with severe viral pneumonia due to SARS
Pneumonia fills the lung's alveoli with fluid, hindering oxygenation. The alveolus on the left is normal, whereas the one on the right is full of fluid from pneumonia.
A chest X-ray showing a very prominent wedge-shaped area of airspace consolidation in the right lung characteristic of acute bacterial lobar pneumonia
CT of the chest demonstrating right-sided pneumonia (left side of the image)
A pleural effusion: as seen on chest X-ray. The A arrow indicates fluid layering in the right chest. The B arrow indicates the width of the right lung. The volume of the lung is reduced because of the collection of fluid around the lung.
Deaths from lower respiratory infections per million persons in 2012
WPA poster, 1936/1937
Pneumonia seen by ultrasound
Right middle lobe pneumonia in a child as seen on plain X-ray

Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing.

Figure A shows normal anatomy. Figure B shows lungs with pleurisy in the right lung, and a pneumothorax of the left lung.

Pleurisy

Inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity .

Inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity .

Figure A shows normal anatomy. Figure B shows lungs with pleurisy in the right lung, and a pneumothorax of the left lung.
Pleurisy
Pleural linings and space (marked in blue)
The illustration shows a person undergoing thoracentesis. The person sits upright and leans on a table. Excess fluid from the pleural space is drained into a bag.

This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing.

Blockage of a coronary artery

Acute coronary syndrome

Syndrome (a set of signs and symptoms) due to decreased blood flow in the coronary arteries such that part of the heart muscle is unable to function properly or dies.

Syndrome (a set of signs and symptoms) due to decreased blood flow in the coronary arteries such that part of the heart muscle is unable to function properly or dies.

Blockage of a coronary artery
Classification of acute coronary syndromes.

The most common symptom is centrally located chest pain, often radiating to the left shoulder or angle of the jaw, crushing, central and associated with nausea and sweating.

Shortness of breath

Uncomfortable feeling of not being able to breathe well enough.

Uncomfortable feeling of not being able to breathe well enough.

Acute coronary syndrome frequently presents with retrosternal chest discomfort and difficulty catching the breath.

An artistic rendition of someone experiencing a panic attack, being reassured by another person.

Panic attack

An artistic rendition of someone experiencing a panic attack, being reassured by another person.
Artist's subjective impression of what a panic attack feels like

Panic attacks are sudden periods of intense fear and discomfort that may include palpitations, sweating, chest pain or chest discomfort, shortness of breath, trembling, dizziness, numbness, confusion, or a feeling of impending doom or of losing control.

Illustration depicting atherosclerosis in a coronary artery

Coronary artery disease

Coronary artery disease (CAD), also called coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic heart disease (IHD), myocardial ischemia, or simply heart disease, involves the reduction of blood flow to the heart muscle due to build-up of atherosclerotic plaque in the arteries of the heart.

Coronary artery disease (CAD), also called coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic heart disease (IHD), myocardial ischemia, or simply heart disease, involves the reduction of blood flow to the heart muscle due to build-up of atherosclerotic plaque in the arteries of the heart.

Illustration depicting atherosclerosis in a coronary artery
Clogged artery
Micrograph of a coronary artery with the most common form of coronary artery disease (atherosclerosis) and marked luminal narrowing. Masson's trichrome.
Illustration depicting coronary artery disease
Coronary angiogram of a man
Coronary angiogram of a woman
Deaths due to ischaemic heart disease per million persons in 2012

A common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may travel into the shoulder, arm, back, neck, or jaw.

Heart

Muscular organ in most animals that pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system.

Muscular organ in most animals that pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system.

Human heart during an autopsy
Computer-generated animation of a beating human heart
The human heart is in the middle of the thorax, with its apex pointing to the left.
Heart being dissected showing right and left ventricles, from above
Frontal section showing papillary muscles attached to the tricuspid valve on the right and to the mitral valve on the left via chordae tendineae.
Layers of the heart wall, including visceral and parietal pericardium
The swirling pattern of myocardium helps the heart pump effectively
Arterial supply to the heart (red), with other areas labelled (blue).
Autonomic innervation of the heart
Development of the human heart during the first eight weeks (top) and the formation of the heart chambers (bottom). In this figure, the blue and red colors represent blood inflow and outflow (not venous and arterial blood). Initially, all venous blood flows from the tail/atria to the ventricles/head, a very different pattern from that of an adult.
Blood flow through the valves
The cardiac cycle as correlated to the ECG
The x-axis reflects time with a recording of the heart sounds. The y-axis represents pressure.
Transmission of a cardiac action potential through the heart's conduction system
Conduction system of the heart
The prepotential is due to a slow influx of sodium ions until the threshold is reached followed by a rapid depolarization and repolarization. The prepotential accounts for the membrane reaching threshold and initiates the spontaneous depolarization and contraction of the cell; there is no resting potential.
3D echocardiogram showing the mitral valve (right), tricuspid and mitral valves (top left) and aortic valve (top right). The closure of the heart valves causes the heart sounds.
Cardiac cycle shown against ECG
Heart and its blood vessels, by Leonardo da Vinci, 15th century
Animated heart
Elize Ryd making a heart sign at a concert in 2018
The tube-like heart (green) of the mosquito Anopheles gambiae extends horizontally across the body, interlinked with the diamond-shaped wing muscles (also green) and surrounded by pericardial cells (red). Blue depicts cell nuclei.
Basic arthropod body structure – heart shown in red
The human heart viewed from the front
The human heart viewed from behind
The coronary circulation
The human heart viewed from the front and from behind
Frontal section of the human heart
An anatomical specimen of the heart
Heart illustration with circulatory system
Animated Heart 3d Model Rendered in Computer

Cardiovascular diseases frequently do not have symptoms or may cause chest pain or shortness of breath.

Illustration depicting angina

Angina

Illustration depicting angina
Diagram of discomfort caused by coronary artery disease. Pressure, fullness, squeezing or pain in the center of the chest. Can also feel discomfort in the neck, jaw, shoulders, back or arms.

Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, a symptom of coronary heart disease, usually due to insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium).

A job applicant exhibiting a facial configuration that in certain cultures is an expression of worry.

Anxiety

Emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and it includes subjectively unpleasant feelings of dread over anticipated events.

Emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and it includes subjectively unpleasant feelings of dread over anticipated events.

A job applicant exhibiting a facial configuration that in certain cultures is an expression of worry.
Painting entitled Anxiety, 1894, by Edvard Munch
A marble bust of the Roman Emperor Decius from the Capitoline Museum. This portrait "conveys an impression of anxiety and weariness, as of a man shouldering heavy [state] responsibilities".

Cardiac, as palpitations, tachycardia, or chest pain.