{"id":16374,"date":"2023-08-10T17:18:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-10T17:18:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/difference-between-a-heart-attack-and-a-cardiac-arrest\/"},"modified":"2026-02-05T07:25:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T07:25:44","slug":"difference-between-a-heart-attack-and-a-cardiac-arrest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/difference-between-a-heart-attack-and-a-cardiac-arrest\/","title":{"rendered":"Difference Between a Heart Attack and a Cardiac Arrest?"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you just went through a few diagnostic tests and the doctor told you that you had a <\/span>heart attack <\/strong>and not a cardiac arrest, how would you interpret it? Should you be a bit relieved or more worried?<\/span><\/p>\n

As you can see, medical definitions can be confusing, so you need to understand the key differences between these two cardiac emergencies.<\/span><\/p>\n

Heart attacks often occur because of coronary heart diseases, which means that the heart is not getting enough oxygen-rich blood and it’s slowly dying. It might happen because of your age, diet, habits, or because of other medical complications.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other hand, cardiac arrest occurs when your heart’s electrical system breaks down or malfunctions. It generally happens because of arrhythmias that interfere with the electrical pulses of the heart, causing irregular heartbeats.<\/span><\/p>\n

In this article, you will learn the difference between heart attack and cardiac arrest, including the difference between their symptoms, risk factors, diagnosis, and treatment methods.<\/span><\/p>\n

Heart Attack vs. Cardiac Arrest: The Fundamental Difference<\/strong><\/p>\n

A heart attack<\/strong>, also known as myocardial infarction, is when the blood flow to the heart is cut off for some reason. As the heart is unable to get enough oxygen-rich blood, it causes damage to the heart itself, and the heart muscles start dying.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other hand, cardiac arrest is a condition where the heart suddenly stops beating. It’s an extremely serious medical issue as it can result in permanent disability or near-immediate death.<\/span><\/p>\n

Comparing the Symptoms of Heart Attack and Cardiac Arrest<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Whether it’s a heart attack or cardiac arrest, both are emergency medical conditions that can threaten your life. That’s why it would be wise to learn more about the symptoms of each of them.<\/span><\/p>\n

Heart Attack Symptoms<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Most of the time, heart attacks can start with sudden chest pain. However, the symptoms can also involve slow and mild chest pains that continuously come and go over a few hours. <\/span><\/p>\n

The point is that <\/span>heart attack symptoms<\/strong> can greatly vary. And if you have already suffered from a heart attack once, a different kind of symptom may show up until you suddenly suffer from another attack.<\/span><\/p>\n

The symptoms of heart attack can be different for men and women. Still, chest pain is one of the most common indicators of heart attack that appears in both sexes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Please remember that women often suffer from a wider variety of symptoms than men, which includes nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, back pain, jaw pain, etc.<\/span><\/p>\n

Symptoms of Cardiac Arrest<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Before people suffer from <\/span>cardiac arrest,<\/strong> they often don’t even know that they have a problem related to the heart. When people experience cardiac arrest, they might suddenly collapse or lose consciousness. They can even experience difficulty in breathing or stop breathing entirely.<\/span><\/p>\n

A comparison of the symptoms of these two diseases<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Here’s a list of some of the most common symptoms of heart attack and cardiac arrest:<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\n

Symptoms of heart attack<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Symptoms of cardiac arrest<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

The symptoms might start increasing over time but they might not always happen. The main symptom is chest pain.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

The symptoms might start increasing over time but it might not always happen.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Heavy sweating without any specific reason.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Nausea and vomiting.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Chest pain, heaviness, and a sense of discomfort at the left side of the center of the chest.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Dizziness<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Shortness of breath even after doing little activity or even while resting.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Sudden weakness and fatigue.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Feeling tired for no reason – sometimes over the span of several days.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Heart palpitations.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Lightheadedness<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Difficulty in the breathing of sudden half of breathing.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Nausea and vomiting.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Lack of pulse.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Pain or discomfort in arms, back, shoulders, jaw, or above belly button.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Shortness of breath.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Irregular heart rate.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Loss of consciousness.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Heart Attack vs. Cardiac Arrest: The Causes and Risk Factors<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The risk factors and the reasons for heart attack and <\/span>cardiac arrest <\/strong>are quite different from each other. In the case of a heart attack, many people already have a prior idea that they might have a problem related to the heart and that they are at risk of suffering from a sudden heart attack.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the case of cardiac arrest, however, many people are actually clueless about the condition of their heart, making them ignore the risk factors.<\/span><\/p>\n

Causes of Heart Attack<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Coronary heart disease is often the main culprit behind heart attacks, which happen because of the lack of oxygen supply to the heart tissues. So, the people who are already being treated for such heart disease<\/a> already know that they may suffer from heart attacks.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here’s a list of risk factors that are responsible for <\/span>heart attacks:<\/strong><\/p>\n