Pain similarities and differences in the chest syndromes: systematic literature review.

Abstract

Clinical conditions that present chest pain should be its causes quickly and precisely diagnosed. The objective of this study was to identify the existence of specific and common pain characteristics in acute myocardial infarction, angina, pericarditis, dissected thoracic aorta, and esophagus conditions. A systematic literature search was carried out using descriptors related to pain and chest syndromes. The following databases were searched for articles published between 1996 and November, 2005: Caribbean and Latin American in Health Sciences Literature (LILACS), Medical Literature and Retrieval System On Line (MEDLINE), Nursing Database (BDEnf), Pan-American Health Organization Database (PAHO), World Health Organization Library Database (WHOLIS), and Cochrane Library, between 1966 and November of 2005. No conclusive studies on the characterization of chest pain diagnosis were found.