The differences between stroke vs heart attack don’t mean much to the average person, both are deadly serious. Throw in other conditions like cardiac arrest and it’s not made any clearer. But the symptoms between these three conditions are remarkably different, as are their impacts and how you need to respond. Knowing the difference could end up making all of the difference.
Stroke Symptoms
A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is cut off, either because an artery is blocked by a clot or because a blood vessel in the brain ruptures and bleeds into surrounding tissue. The clearest distinction in stroke vs heart attack is the location: a stroke attacks the brain, which is why every warning sign it produces is neurological.
The symptoms of stroke and the actions you need to take can be easily remembered through the FAST mnemonic:
Face: One side of your face may droop or feel numb. Ask the person to smile and watch whether both sides of their mouth move equally.
Arms: One arm may feel weak or numb. Ask the person to raise both arms at the same time; if one drifts downward, that is a sign of stroke.
Speech: Speech may be slurred, or the person may be unable to speak or hard to understand. Ask them to repeat a simple phrase, such as “the sky is blue.”
Time: Immediately call 000 if any of these signs appear, even if they seem to go away.
Other symptoms may include sudden dizziness, loss of balance, numbness on one side of the body, or a sudden severe headache with no obvious cause.
Signs and Symptoms of a Heart Attack
A heart attack occurs when blood flow to the heart is blocked. The fundamental difference in stroke vs heart attack is which organ loses its blood supply: a heart attack cuts off blood flow to the heart, not the brain.
Heart attack symptoms may gradually develop over minutes to hours. The most common heart attack symptom is chest discomfort that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the centre of your chest. Other symptoms can include:
- Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach
- Shortness of breath, with or without chest discomfort
- Cold sweats
- Nausea and vomiting
- Lightheadedness or dizziness
Women may experience different heart attack symptoms than men. While chest pain remains the most common symptom in women, women are more likely to also experience shortness of breath, nausea, back or jaw pain, and fatigue.
Warning Signs of Cardiac Arrest
Cardiac arrest occurs when the heart stops beating because of an electrical malfunction. While stroke vs heart attack both involve disrupted blood supply to a specific organ, cardiac arrest is a system-wide shutdown: blood stops reaching the brain, the heart muscle, and every other organ throughout the body. Warning signs include:
Loss of consciousness: The person suddenly collapses and does not respond to being tapped firmly on the shoulders.
No breathing: The person is not taking normal breaths.
In some cases, there may be warning signs in the minutes before cardiac arrest, such as chest pain, shortness of breath, or dizziness. However, cardiac arrest can occur with no warning at all.
When You Cannot Tell Which One It Is
Telling between a stroke vs heart attack and cardiac arrest relies on which symptoms are present and some of them overlap: dizziness and chest pain. When the symptoms are unclear, immediately call 000 and describe what you observe: whether the person is conscious, whether they are breathing, the symptoms present, and how long those symptoms have been present. All three are time-sensitive emergencies, and the emergency operator can guide you through the right response.
Some markers help narrow it down:
Cardiac arrest: The person is unresponsive and not breathing. Immediately begin CPR.
Stroke: The person may remain conscious and breathing, but shows sudden changes to their face, arm movement, or speech.
Heart attack: The person is conscious and able to speak, and may report chest discomfort or pain that radiates to the arms, neck, back, or jaw.
Risk Factors
Your risk of stroke vs heart attack is shaped by many of the same underlying conditions, which means addressing one risk factor can reduce your risk of both.
Shared risk factors include:
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- Smoking
- Obesity
- Physical inactivity
- Diabetes
- Family history of heart disease or stroke
Most heart attacks result from coronary artery disease, where plaque builds up inside the arteries and restricts blood flow to the heart muscle over time. Cardiac arrest shares most of these same risk factors, and a heart attack can directly trigger cardiac arrest by disrupting the heart’s electrical system.
Learn to Spot the Differences
Being able to tell a stroke vs heart attack and cardiac arrest apart determines how quickly and correctly you respond when any one of them occurs. Every minute of delay causes more permanent damage, whether to the brain, the heart, or both. When an emergency happens, there is no time to look up warning signs or work out which is which. First aid training converts that awareness into action and turns you into someone who could save a life.
FAQs
What Is the Treatment for Stroke?
Ischaemic stroke, caused by a blood clot, is treated with clot-busting drugs or a procedure that physically removes the clot from the blocked blood vessel. Haemorrhagic stroke, caused by bleeding in the brain may involve surgery or medication to reduce pressure and prevent further damage.
What Is a Transient Ischaemic Attack?
A transient ischaemic attack (TIA) is a brief blockage of blood flow to the brain that produces stroke-like symptoms, including speech changes, facial drooping, and arm weakness, which clear on their own within 24 hours. A TIA signals a significantly elevated risk of a full stroke in the days and weeks that follow.
What is Heart Failure?
Heart failure is a chronic condition in which the heart cannot pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs; it develops gradually and is managed with medication, lifestyle changes, and sometimes surgery.
