Hiccups can have various causes, ranging in severity from 'life-threatening' to 'generally fatal'. Finding the true cause means ruling out or confirming each possibility – in other words, diagnosis.
Diagnosis is usually a complex process due to the sheer number of possible causes and related symptoms. In order to diagnose hiccups, we could:
|Chronic Renal Insufficiency||25%||Unlikely|
|Heart Disease||2%||Ruled out|
How often do you have hiccups?
Possible responses:→ Rarely / 'average' / Don't know
→ Regular minor episodes lasting several minutes
→ Regular major episodes lasting an hour or more
→ Current problem that won't stop
Hiccups usually last for only a few minutes, but can persist for days – or even months in rare cases. Although usually benign, they can sometimes be an indicator of underlying metabolic or infectious processes, including heart disease.
Hiccups can be one of the first signs of heart muscle damage or heart attack.