| What it feels like | Where it's located | What makes it better | What makes it worse | What causes it |
|---|
| Aching, squeezing, burning pain as well as pressure and heaviness; usually subsides within 10 minutes | Substernal; may radiate to jaw, neck, arms, or back | Rest, nitroglycerin (Note: Unstable angina appears even at rest.) | Eating, physical effort, smoking, cold weather, stress, anger, hunger, lying down | Angina pectoris |
| Tightness or pressure; burning, aching pain, possibly accompanied by shortness of breath, diaphoresis, weakness, anxiety, or nausea; sudden onset; lasts 30 minutes to 2 hours | Typically across chest but may radiate to jaw, neck, arms, or back | Opioid analgesics, such as morphine and nitroglycerin | Exertion, anxiety | Acute MI |
| Sharp and continuous; may be accompanied by friction rub; sudden onset | Substernal; may radiate to neck or left arm | Sitting up, leaning forward, anti-inflammatory drugs | Deep breathing, supine position | Pericarditis |
| Excruciating, tearing pain; may be accompanied by blood pressure difference between right and left arm; sudden onset | Retrosternal, upper abdominal, or epigastric; may radiate to back, neck, or shoulders | Analgesics, surgery | Not applicable | Dissecting aortic aneurysm |
| Sudden, stabbing pain; possibly cyanosis, dyspnea, or cough with hemoptysis | Over lung area | Analgesics | Inspiration | Pulmonary embolus |
| Sudden, severe pain; may experience dyspnea, increased pulse rate, decreased breath sounds, or deviated trachea | Lateral thorax | Analgesics, chest tube insertion | Normal respiration | Pneumothorax |