When I first began my medical practice, one of the first patients I saw was an elderly gentleman who came into my office off the street because he couldn’t stop belching; he was also mildly short of breath. He thought all he had was a severe case of indigestion. However, I admitted him to the emergency room because he was actually having a heart attack, though he didn’t believe me. At times a person may have heart attack symptoms—such as belching—without any significant chest pain.
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