comparison of angina and Da Costa's syndrome
Last reviewed 01/2018
The clinical features suggestive of typical angina and Da Costa's syndrome are compared and contrasted below:
| Angina | Da Costa's syndrome | |
| Site: | central, retrosternal across the chest | left breast |
| Radiation: | arms, jaw, back | left arm |
| Description: | constricting, crushing | ache with sharp stabs |
| Duration: | minutes | minutes to hours |
| Provocation: | effort and emotion | effort, fatigue, in bed |
| Other symptoms: | nil | breathlessness, exhaustion, dizziness |
| Coronary arteries | often stenosed | normal |
Da Costa’s publications in 1871 first described this syndrome. His definition of the syndrome was based on observations of soldiers during the American Civil War.
Reference:
- J. M. Da Costa: On irritable heart; a clinical study of a form of functional cardiac disorder and its consequences. American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Thorofare, N.J., 1871, 61: 17–52.