Page 2 - October News,2 2022 amber

12 Pain Symptoms You sprain. “But if you can't move it and you're having pain,
that should be investigated immediately,” Leap says. Loss
Should Never Ignore of function can indicate a fracture, nerve injury, loss of

blood flow or a serious infection.

Doctors share which eye, chest and stom- 2. Eye pain that comes out of nowhere
ach pains, among others, may indicate Sudden or acute eye pain, with or without vision changes,
something serious can point to a serious problem that should get looked at

by Michelle Crouch, AARP, Updated Au- right away, says Michael Hanak, M.D., a family medicine
gust 11, 2022 specialist and associate professor at Rush University Medi-
cal College in Chicago. It could be caused by a blocked
blood vessel, a detached retina, internal bleeding or
acute glaucoma, a serious eye condition caused by in-
creased pressure inside the eye. Eye pain can also be the
If you're hurting, see a doctor. It's sound advice that may first symptom of shingles, a viral infection that causes a
seem obvious, but older adults in particular sometimes painful rash, Hanak says.
write off pain as a function of aging and may wait too long
to get medical atten- 3. Chest pain
tion, says Edwin Leap,
M.D., an emergency An older adult experienc-
physician in Southern ing any type of chest pain
Appalachia. should be evaluated by a

He has seen it hap- doctor right away, says
pen. And the results Hanak, who notes that
a heart attack doesn't
can be devastating.
always manifest as sud-
"Boomers, especially, den, crushing pain. “A lot
are very stoic,” Leap of times, it’s pressure,
says. “They're used to heaviness or tightness
things hurting. So they with breathing. ”Other
put off chest pain for a signs of a heart attack
day or two, and by the are dizziness, fatigue or
time they come to shortness of breath while
hospital, they've com- doing ordinary activities
pleted a heart attack. like going up the stairs or
Or they fall off a lad- gardening. Chest pain
der, get up and say may also be a signal that
they're fine. Then it a blood clot has moved
turns out they have an to your lungs or heart —
intracranial hemor- a life-threatening condi-
rhage — a life- tion that needs immedi-
threatening situation.” ate treatment.

Any new or unexplained pain should be checked out by a 4. Pain in one or both arms, your jaw or between the
doctor, Leap says, even if it's not severe.
shoulder blades
Of course, some types of pain are more likely to signal
something serious. Doctors recommend heading straight These lesser-known symptoms of a heart attack are more
to the emergency room if you're experiencing one of the likely to affect women, according to the American Heart
types below. Association. Nausea or vomiting, shortness of breath, dizzi-
ness and light-headedness are other heart attack symp-
1. Pain with loss of function
toms to look for. Severe pain between the shoulder blades
If you hurt your leg but can still walk on it, it may be just a can also be caused by an aneurysm or a tear in your aorta,