It may also be described as aching, burning or indigestion. The pain typically occurs in the substernal region of the chest and may radiate to the neck, jaw, teeth, arms shoulders and abdomen. The more severe the attach the greater the radiation. The pain usually is of short duration. This lack of blood supply to the heart muscle to sustain various levels of work required of the heart is called myocardial ischemia.
Coronary atherosclerosis is often an underlying problem in angina.
Angina occurs when the blood flow to the heart is enough for normal needs but not enough for increased needs such as occurs in physical exercise, strong emotions or extreme temperatures. For example running to catch a bus could trigger an attack of angina where walking to the bus stop might not. People who have coronary artery spasm may have angina when they are resting. This is called Prinzmetal's or variant angina pectoris. Variant Angina or Prinzmetal's Angina Variant angina also called Prinzmetal's angina differs from typical chronic stable angina pectoris in that it occurs almost exclusively when a person is at rest and does not follow a period of physical exertion or emotional stress.