AHA Makes First Statement on Heart Attacks in Women

A scientific statement issued by the American Heart Association highlights the understudy, underdiagnosis, and undertreatment of heart disease in women, and helps to outline strategies to better identify and manage this issue.

Men and women experience heart attacks in different ways, according to researchers. Most prominently, women frequently lack the telling chest pain commonly associated with a heart attack. They may, instead, have palpitations, back pain, shoulder or jaw pain, anxiety, sweating, indigestion, or even flu-like symptoms.
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Further, women often have different causes for their heart attacks than the common blockage in the coronary artery: they may have no blockage at all, or experience spontaneous coronary artery dissection.

The researchers noted that the most important step to decreasing women’s risk is to call attention to gender-specific differences and improve awareness, prevention, recognition, and treatment in women with heart disease.

They also called for improved psychological treatments and improved support for women at risk for heart disease, and increased public health education and interventions targeting racial and ethnic minority women who may be at greater risk.

 —Michael Potts

Reference:

Mehta LS, Beckie TM, DeVon HA, et al. Acute myocardial infarction in women. Circulation. January 25, 2016 [epub ahead of print]. Doi: 10.1161/CIR.0000000000000351.