People are being warned to keep an eye out for certain health symptoms that may indicate you have a heart disease, which can be life-threatening.
Besides its 'classic' symptoms, the disease can also present itself on your skin and nails. According to the NHS, coronary heart disease (CHD) is a major cause of death in the UK and worldwide. Main symptoms include chest pain, shortness of breath, pain throughout the body, feeling faint and feeling sick.
However, heart disease can often reveal itself in various ways on your skin and nails that aren't always obvious. Usually, a doctor may be the first to notice you could have heart disease after inspecting certain parts of your body.
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These tell-tale signs can include swelling in your feet and lower legs and red or purple lines under your nails. Below is a look at the full list of warning signs to keep an eye out for, as reported by the American Academy of Dermatology Association.
Swollen feet, ankles and calves
What it may be telling you: Your heart isn’t working properly. Many diseases of the heart cause fluid to build up in your feet and lower legs. As the fluid builds up, you may see swelling, which can extend as far as the upper legs and groin.
Skin turning blue or purple
What it may be telling you: You have a blockage in a blood vessel. If an area of your skin is blue (or purple) when you’re warm, that’s can be a sign your blood isn’t getting enough oxygen. Without treatment, the lack of oxygen can cause the skin and underlying tissue to eventually die.
Curved nails and swollen fingertips
What it may be telling you: You may have a heart infection, heart disease, or lung problem. Otherwise known as clubbing, for many people, these signs are harmless. That said, if your fingers and nails look like this, it’s best to find out if you may have a medical condition, such as lung disease or a heart problem.
Uncomfortable lumps on your fingers and toes
What it may be telling you: You have an infection in your heart or blood vessels. If you have a heart infection known as infective endocarditis, these painful lumps can develop in your fingers, toes, or both places. The lumps can last for a few hours to several days.
Smooth and waxy skin lumps
What it may be telling you: You have protein deposits in your heart or another organ. These waxy lumps can appear anywhere on the skin. They often indicate that there’s an abnormal build-up of protein in an organ, such as your heart. If protein builds up in the heart, it’s hard for the heart to work properly.
Other signs that appear on the skin and can be a warning sign of heart disease, include:
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A grey ring around the coloured part of your eye.
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Changes to your tongue, such as it swelling and turning red as a strawberry.
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Discoloured skin.
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Rash and cracked, swollen lips that often bleed.
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Blue or purple net-like pattern on your skin.
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