Da Costa's syndrome
| Da Costa's syndrome | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Soldier's heart, irritable heart syndrome, neurocirculatory asthenia, cardiac neurosis, chronic asthenia, effort syndrome, functional cardiovascular disease, primary neurasthenia, subacute asthenia |
| Specialty | Psychiatry, Cardiology |
| Symptoms | fatigue upon exertion, shortness of breath, palpitations, sweating, chest pain |
| Differential diagnosis | chronic fatigue syndrome, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mitral valve prolapse syndrome |
Da Costa's syndrome, also known as soldier's heart among other names, was a syndrome or a set of symptoms similar to those of heart disease. These include fatigue upon exertion, shortness of breath, palpitations, sweating, chest pain, and sometimes orthostatic intolerance. It was originally thought to be a cardiac condition, and treated with a predecessor to modern cardiac drugs. In modern times, it is believed to represent several unrelated disorders, some of which have a known medical basis.
Historically, similar forms of this disorder have been noticed in various wars, like the American Civil War and Crimean war, and among British troops who colonized India. The condition was named after Jacob Mendes Da Costa who investigated and described the disorder in 1871.