CARDIAC AND NON-CARDIAC CHEST PAIN: A STATISTICAL STUDY OF "DIAGNOSTIC" CRITERIA

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Abstract
Because of the increasing incidence of coronary disease, the importance of differentiating heart pain or angina pectoris from non-cardiac pain cannot be overemphasized. These 2 types of pain were usually distinguished on the basis of relation to effort, location, character or type, radiation, duration and effect of nitroglycerin. In order to determine the diagnostic value of each of the features used in the differentiation, a statistical study was made of 100 patients with definite coronary disease and 100 others without heart disease. It was found that in each of the 6 indices investigated, both the coronary and non-cardiac groups presented 15-40% exceptions to the generally accepted "typical" response. Therefore, no one characteristic of chest pain should be used to differentiate cardiac from non-cardiac chest pain. However, the presence of 3 or more "typical" features usually permits the correct diagnosis to be made.

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