heart attack

noun

, Pathology.

1. damage to an area of heart muscle that is deprived of oxygen, usually due to blockage of a diseased coronary artery, typically accompanied by chest pain radiating down one or both arms, the severity of the attack varying with the extent and location of the damage; myocardial infarction.

heart attack

noun

1. any sudden severe instance of abnormal heart functioning, esp coronary thrombosis

heart attack

1. Necrosis of a region of the heart muscle caused by an interruption in the supply of blood to the heart, usually as a result of occlusion of a coronary artery resulting from coronary artery disease . Symptoms typically include sudden, crushing chest pain, nausea, and sweating. Characteristic changes in the electrocardiogram are used to diagnose heart attacks.
2. Also called myocardial infarction

heart attack

1. An episode of heart failure or the stopping of normal heart function; a coronary thrombosis . Symptoms of a heart attack include pain and pressure in the chest, which often spread to the shoulder, arm, and neck. Today, physicians tend to define heart attack in terms of muscle damage to the heart caused by oxygen deprivation.

Word History and Origins

Origin of heart attack¹

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

Last year, just before he was scheduled to testify on the legislation, he had a heart attack and stroke in the State House complex.

From Washington Post

Patients with heart attacks, strokes and even appendicitis vanish from hospitals Heart conditions drove spike in deaths beyond those attributed to covid-19

From Washington Post

He suffered a mild heart attack and lost consciousness at times.

From Washington Post

After the covid vaccines, some researchers expect Moderna and BioNTech to return to their original plans for the technology, like treating more conventional ailments such as heart attacks, cancer, or rare inherited diseases.

From MIT Technology Review

The union representing Capitol Police officers says that 140 officers suffered injuries, including broken bones and a heart attack, during the riot.

From Washington Post

Ground glass is put in food to cause internal bleeding, and nicotine concentrated by boiling can cause a heart attack.

From The Daily Beast

(Police at the scene initially claimed that the asthmatic, 350-pound Garner had suffered a heart attack).

From The Daily Beast

This can lead to the very heart attack that placing the stent was trying to prevent.

From The Daily Beast

He was one of the highest-paid fashion photographers of the 1950s, and he committed suicide by inducing a heart attack.

From The Daily Beast

The 71-year-old had not taken his heart medication, and he suffered a heart attack.

From The Daily Beast

I have hopes, high hopes, that might have brought on the real heart attack he had the next day.

From Project Gutenberg

The doctor told us he had suffered a massive heart attack and knew he wouldn't live.

From Project Gutenberg

The phone rang in the house and the lady came out to tell us my father had been taken to the hospital with a heart attack.

From Project Gutenberg

Did the prisoner show any symptoms of illness before his heart attack?

From Project Gutenberg

She must have suffered a heart-attack and fallen as she tried to cross the room alone.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• cardiovascular disease
• congestive heart failure