Why does the heart ache after walking

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A strange case was described by one 79-year-old patient who turned to Dr. Martin Scarr for advice. When he walks a few tens of meters, he is forced to stop because of unpleasant gripping sensations in the heart, but kilometer races on an exercise bike do not cause such symptoms.

The first symptom you described clearly indicates angina pectoris, which causes dull pain in the chest. , which pulls, caused by a decrease in blood flow to the heart. But the second symptom is surprising. Why does heartache occur in one case, but not after training on an exercise bike? Angina is the reaction of the heart to increased loads, and in both scenarios it should seem to be the same.

But I remember one of my patients, who every morning walked on the way to the station on a small slope. Like you, he was in his late 80s and in good physical shape. The patient noticed that whenever he carried a heavy briefcase, his chest hurt. And without the briefcase, there was no pain.

Then I transferred it to an exercise electrocardiogram, or a recording of the heart's electrical activity during treadmill exercise. The results showed that his heart rate was reduced during training and tests confirmed angina. The added weight of the briefcase was enough to trigger her fit. On an exercise bike, the load on the heart can be less – there is no additional load, as when walking. Maybe a leisurely ride on the treadmill keeps you below the threshold for an angina attack. That is why it is necessary to go through an ECG with a load.