I've had asthma since I was a Kid. I thought I'd outgrown it, but over the last few years, it has gotten worse.

I had a recent attack that has me really worried. This may sound strange, but I'm wondering about the similarities between asthma and heart attack.

The attack I had recently was different from others I've had. I wasn't wheezing--I only had bad chest tightness/fullness. I was very short of breath, and my heart would race just from standing up. My inhaler didn't help that much---usually it would take care of it right away. The attack lasted until the next morning, when I went to the doctor. This was a new doctor. By the time I saw him, my symptoms were almost gone. He listened to my chest and said that he heard wheezing and congestion, and prescribed advair and cingulair. I'm going back for followup in 3 weeks.

Because this attack was so different, I've been reading up on things, and been struck by similarities between asthma and heart attack. I am 37, and my dad was 37 when he had his first heart attack.

Is it possible this could be my heart and not my lungs, as I and the dr. had assumed? My blood pressure is normal.

Sorry to hear that you had a bad attack. My advice to you would be to have your primary refer you to an pulmonologist(sp) for the asthma and lungs; and a cardiologist to check your heart function for your own peace of mind. Don't fool around with either. Asthma can cause a heart attack if not treated promptly. Also never wait too long for a rescue inhaler to work, if it does nothing for you in the first hour or two you should go directly to ER for treatment.

Hope this helps.