Healthcare Workers' Conceptions of Acute Coronary Syndrome-Related Chest Pain: A Cross-Sectional, Descriptive Study

Rapid identification of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is critical to facilitate timely treatment. Chest pain is the most common ACS symptom; however, little research has focused on healthcare workers' conceptions of this symptom.

In this study, we aimed to describe how healthcare workers conceive of chest pain related to ACS, including symptom dimensions of timing, distress, intensity, and quality.

We used a cross-sectional, descriptive-comparative design, leveraging an electronic survey that included the Chest Pain Conception Questionnaire. Data were collected in spring 2025 from a large, multifacility health system in the Midwest.

Of the N = 400 participants, 224 (56%) were nurses or providers. Participants commonly (>85%) selected locations on the left side of the body (ie, left chest, left shoulder, and left arm) as potential locations for ACS-related chest pain while less often selecting locations on the right side and in the upper belly (all < 50%). While terms such as pressure (90.5%), heaviness (89.0%), and tightness (87.5%) were commonly endorsed, indigestion (43.8%) and fullness (24.8%) were less commonly selected. Over 75% of participants reported believing ACS-related chest pain is "intense" or "very intense," and more participants believed this symptom "often" or "always" happens with activity (61.8%), compared with rest (38.8%). Several differences were noted between participants who worked as a nurse or provider and those who did not.

Misconceptions about ACS-related chest pain were identified in this sample of healthcare workers, and future work can focus on correcting misconceptions and ensuring accurate teaching and assessment.