|
||||||||
 |
Send to a Colleague |
|
Doctor Profile |
Anna K. Baer, MD
Albemarle Cardiology, PLC
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for American women.
More than 250,000 women die each year from ischemic heart disease.
Only 13% of women consider heart disease to be their greatest health risk.
38% of women who have an MI die within one year, compared with 25% in men.
Women are more likely to present with atypical symptoms.
Women are less likely to have obstructive coronary disease.
Stress testing may not be as accurate in women.
Women have worse outcomes after PCI and CABG.
Most of the literature regarding the diagnosis and management of coronary heart disease is supported by studies performed in predominately male populations. Recent studies have focused on the differences between men and women and the differences in treatment between men and women when dealing with cardiovascular disease.
Cardiovascular disease, primarily coronary artery disease, is the leading cause of death for American women. 38% of all deaths in women are related to coronary heart disease, compared with 22% resulting from cancer. Even among women under the age of 35, coronary artery disease causes more deaths than breast cancer. More than 250,000 women die each year of ischemic heart disease. With the population aging and the rising rates of cigarette smoking, physical inactivity, obesity, and hypertension, that number is expected to increase. Slightly more women than men die annually of cardiovascular disease. The incidence of myocardial infarctions has decreased in young men while it continues to increase in older women. The relative risk of stroke is much higher in women than it is in men. Despite these figures, in a 2003 AHA poll, only 13% of American women considered heart disease their greatest health risk. Over the last 10 years, there has been a decrease in coronary heart disease mortality among men, but the death rate among women continues to increase. 38% of women who have an MI die within one year, compared with 25% of men. Most of the literature regarding the diagnosis and management of coronary heart disease is supported by studies performed in predominately male populations. Recent studies have focused on the differences between men and women and the differences in treatment between men and women when dealing with cardiovascular disease.Diagnosing ischemic heart disease can sometimes be more difficult in women than in men. Heart disease has traditionally been thought of as a male disease. Medical students have been taught that being male is a risk factor for coronary artery disease. Women tend to have more symptoms and more symptoms that are considered atypical. On angiography, they tend to have less obstructive coronary disease and are more likely than men to have normal LV function. However, they still have more adverse outcomes.