Chest Pain

Most chest pain is not a sign of anything serious but get medical advice just in case. Get immediate medical help if you think you're having a heart attack.

Call 999 if:

you get sudden pain or discomfort in your chest that does not go away - the pain can feel like squeezing or pressure inside your chest, burning or indigestion
you get pain that spreads to your left or right arm, or your neck, jaw, stomach or back
you have chest pain and you feel sweaty, sick, light headed or short of breath

You could be having a heart attack. Call 999 straight away as you need immediate treatment in hospital.

See a GP if:

you have chest pain that comes and goes
you have chest pain that goes away quickly but you're still worried

It's important to get medical advice to make sure it's nothing serious.

Common causes of chest pain

Chest pain has many different causes. In most cases, chest pain is not caused by a heart problem.

Your symptoms might give you an idea of the cause. Do not self-diagnose - see a GP if you're worried.

Chest pain and heart problems

The most common heart problems that cause chest pain include:

pericarditis - which usually causes a sudden, sharp, stabbing pain that gets worse when you breathe deeply or lie down
angina or a heart attack - which have similar symptoms but a heart attack is life-threatening

You're more likely to have heart problems if you're older or are at risk of coronary heart disease.

For example, you may be at risk of coronary heart disease if you:

smoke
are living with obesity
have high blood pressure, diabetes or high cholesterol
have a history of heart attacks or angina in family members under 60 years old

Sexual Health Advice

Throughout this series we have help and advice on staying healthy, dealing with Sexually Transmitted Infections, the risks of each type of the most popular gay sex and what to do if the sex you have is not consentual. The topics covered in this series include:

	This item was in brought to you association with NHS website. Follow the links above for more information and don't forget to check out OutUK's A to Z of Gay Health which features items on everything from relationships, sexual health, mental and physical conditions and how to stay fit. This week our topic is: L - Lung Cancer.
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