Heart failure symptoms after Jeremy Clarkson rushed to surgery

He started to feel ill while on holiday and had a 'sudden deterioration'

TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson has been rushed into surgery for heart problems after experiencing a number of serious symptoms. The Top Gear and Grand Tour host says he had a “sudden deterioration” in his heart health.

The 64-year-old presenter of Clarkson’s Farm told The Sunday Times he first felt the stnmptoms of a heart problem while swimming on holiday in the Indian Ocean. He then had difficulties using the stairs and when he returned to the UK a “sudden deterioration began to gather pace”.

He says he had symptoms of being “clammy”, with a “tightness in my chest”, and “pins and needles in my left arm”, and after hearing the news of former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond’s fatal heart attack, he decided to go to see his doctor. Clarkson says he went to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford via an ambulance, where a heart attack was ruled out after he had an electrocardiogram (ECG), blood tests and X-rays.

He said he then went to an “operating theatre”, after further checks, and doctors said he was perhaps “days away” from getting very ill. Clarkson said: “It seems that of the arteries feeding my heart with nourishing blood, one was completely blocked and the second of three was heading that way.”

He said a stent, which can save lives and stop future heart attacks through improving blood flow to the heart, was fitted in around two hours. The motoring journalist said: “It wasn’t especially painful. Just odd,” and added that he has been thinking: “Crikey, that was close.”

According to the NHS, symptoms of heart problems include:

• Chest pain: A feeling of pressure, tightness, or squeezing in the chest that doesn't go away. The pain can also spread to the neck, jaw, back, stomach, or arms.
• Shortness of breath: This can occur at rest or after activity, and may be worse when lying down.
• Swollen ankles and legs: This is caused by fluid building up, and may be better in the morning and worse later in the day.
• Fatigue: You may feel tired most of the time and find exercise exhausting.
• Lightheadedness and fainting: Fainting is a warning sign for a heart disorder.
• Coughing or wheezing: This can be a symptom of a heart attack.
• Feeling sick or being sick: This can be a symptom of a heart attack.
• Sweating: This can be a symptom of a heart attack.
• An overwhelming feeling of anxiety: This can be a symptom of a heart attack.

Other symptoms of heart failure can include:

• a persistent cough, which may be worse at night.
• wheezing.
• a bloated tummy.
• loss of appetite.
• weight gain or weight loss.
• confusion.
• a fast heart rate.
• a pounding, fluttering or irregular heartbeat (palpitations)