Chest Pains : If pain has lasted for more than 15 minutes
If chest pain lasted for more than 15 minutes and there are no other symptoms, or you have had them before, it’s an emergency. Go straight to an emergency room or call 911. This could be a heart attack. You’ll get oxygen and other tests if you go to an ER or hospital. You may need medicine right away so that your heart can keep beating properly while you wait for testing results—and so it doesn’t stop altogether. A person who has had a heart attack needs help quickly. There is usually no reason to wait until regular office hours to seek medical care. Call 9-1-1 as soon as possible! These facilities are required by law to treat all patients without regard for their ability to pay. A visit should not be delayed because of concerns about insurance coverage or costs. In addition, these facilities provide immediate treatment regardless of whether or not they have been notified by your primary care physician. Emergency rooms also perform diagnostic testing which physicians offices cannot offer in many cases. The data obtained from these tests enable these facilities to expedite treatment. Time lost is potentially critical when dealing with cardiovascular issues like those involved in chest pains and angina situations. When treating issues associated with cardiac arrest blood flow depends on survival time measured in seconds rather than minutes.
