Angina, stable - Other causes of chest pain

Angina, stable

Other causes of chest pain

It can be hard for your doctor to figure out if the discomfort or pain you're feeling in your chest really is angina. To help tell what's causing your symptoms, your doctor will ask you some questions, will examine you and may suggest some tests.

Here's a list of other causes of chest discomfort or pain that can be confused with angina:

Source:
Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network.
SIGN clinical guideline 96: management of stable angina.
February 2007. Available at http://www.sign.ac.uk/pdf/sign96.pdf (accessed on 16 February 2009).

Source:
Gibbons RJ, Abrams J, Chatterjee K, et al.
ACC/AHA 2002 guideline update for the management of patients with chronic stable angina.
November 2002. Available at http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/reprint/107/1/149 (accessed on 16 February 2009).

Food coming back up from your stomach toward your throat (doctors call this

acid reflux
Acid reflux happens when acid from your stomach flows into the tube leading from your throat to your stomach (your esophagus) or up into your throat. Acid reflux can cause heartburn.

acid reflux)
An

ulcer
An ulcer is an open sore. Ulcers can happen in many parts of your body, such as in your stomach, and the skin of your legs, mouth or genitals.

ulcer in your stomach
inflammation
If your skin or some other part of your body becomes red, swollen, hot or sore, we say it is inflamed. It means that your body is trying to protect you from germs, from something in your body tissues that can hurt you (like a thorn or sliver), or from things that cause allergies (allergens). Inflammation is part of the way the body heals an infection or injury.

Inflammation of your

gallbladder
The gallbladder is a small organ located below the liver on the right side of your abdomen. Its job is to store bile, a chemical made in the liver that helps to break down food in the intestines.The chemicals in the gallbladder can, under certain circumstances, become solid and form small stones. If a stone gets stuck in the tubes that empty the gallbladder, there can be a backup of fluid, causing the gallbladder to swell and possibly become infected. This condition is called gallbladder disease.

gallbladder
Inflammation or an injury in your chest, ribs or shoulder
Inflammation of the lining of your lungs (called pleurisy) or another disease of your lungs
Anxiety
A panic attack.

Sources for the information on this page:

Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network.SIGN clinical guideline 96: management of stable angina.February 2007. Available at http://www.sign.ac.uk/pdf/sign96.pdf (accessed on 16 February 2009).

Gibbons RJ, Abrams J, Chatterjee K, et al.ACC/AHA 2002 guideline update for the management of patients with chronic stable angina.November 2002. Available at http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/reprint/107/1/149 (accessed on 16 February 2009).

This information was last updated on Apr 14, 2009

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