Older people having heart attacks often don’t feel the usual chest pain—instead, they might feel confused, weak, short of breath, or more tired than normal, which can make it harder for doctors to spot the problem quickly.

Older people are more likely to have heart attacks without knowing it, and these 'silent' heart attacks tend to lead to worse health outcomes—probably because older adults feel less pain and have other health issues that hide the usual warning signs.

As people get older and have heart problems, they're more likely to feel shortness of breath instead of chest pain — and the older they get, the more this shift happens.