Women and Heart Disease:  Ten Things You Need to Know Right Now


1.  Women over the age of 55 are more likely to die of heart disease or stroke than all forms of cancer combined.  Women are more fearful of developing breast cancer, which is a one in eight risk over her lifetime, but they more importantly have a one in three risk of developoing heart disease.

2.  Chest pain in women is more likely to occur at rest or with stress as compared to men.  However, women are less likely to seek medical attention possibly because they feel their symptoms are related to stress or anxiety, acid reflux or musculoskeletal problems, rather than angina, which is chest pain related to the lack of blood flow and oxygen to the heart muscle.

3.  There is an increased mortality of women after an acute MI (heart attack) as well as open heart bypass surgery, as compared to men.  However, the outcomes after balloon angioplasty (PTCA) were similar in both men and women, despite the fact that women were older, had more diabetes and hypertension, as compared to men in the most recent National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute registry.

4.  The reasons for these differences are complex, and include the age of presentation with symptoms, the way that plaque may be distributed in the coronary vessels of women, the size and caliber of these blood vessesls, and hormonal differences.

5.  Unfortunately, the recent Women's Health Initiative study demonstrated that the most common hormone replacement combination with estrogen and progestin did not protect postmenopausal women from developing serious heart disease.

There is much that both women and men can do to lower their risks of developing and dying from heart disease and stroke.

6.  Stop smoking today and the risk of heart disease is cut in half after two years.

7.  Know your cholesterol levels--although the LDL cholesterol should be as low as possible in both women and men, the triglyceride levels are also important, and the HDL cholesterol in women may be very protective.

8.  High blood pressure needs to be monitored closely and should be lowered to levels less than 120/80 if possible, sometimes with a combination of diet, excercise and medication.

9.  Diabetes control is critically important in both women and men since diabetics have a three to sevenfold greater risk of developing heart disease as compared to non-diabetics.

10.  Exercising at least thirty minutes daily, eating right, and reducing the stress in your life are lifestyle changes which improve your chances of leading a healthy, active, and long life while reducing your risk of heart disease. 

Discuss these issues with your friends, family, and physician, and start making these changes right now, not tomorrow.