Heart attack in women: Risk factors and symptoms

1. Everyone may have to deal with a myocardial infarction. However, the risk factors and symptoms for women are a bit different than for men. This often leads to misdiagnosis and delayed treatment, which increases the risk of death. Women with a heart attack may, but not always, experience chest pain, nausea, arm pain, and cold sweats, among other things. Treatment consists of a healthier lifestyle, medication and / or surgery. Finally, a healthy lifestyle reduces the risk of developing a heart attack.

Causes

1. Plaque accumulation When fat, cholesterol and other substances (plaque) build up in the blood vessels that supply the heart, they narrow (vasoconstriction). The blood flow that carries oxygen to the heart muscle is then severely obstructed or completely cut off. When the blood supply to the heart is cut off from the blood vessels, the heart muscle cells die. Also smaller amounts of plaque that normally does not travel with the circulation can break down and form blood clots, which then restrict blood flow and cause minor heart attacks

Symptoms of heart attack in women

1. Chest pain The most common symptom of a heart attack in women is the same as in men, especially pain, pressure or discomfort in the chest (angina pectoris) that lasts or comes and goes for more than a few minutes. But the chest pain is not always severe. Nor is this always the most noticeable symptom in women. Women are more likely to describe a tightness or pressure in the chest instead of pain

Diagnosis and investigations

1. Because women don't always link their symptoms to a heart attack, they usually show up in the emergency room after heart damage has occurred. Because their symptoms are often different from those of men, women are less likely to be diagnosed with heart disease than men. To diagnose a heart attack, the doctor uses several tests such as an electrocardiography (ECG: heart film), an echocardiography, a blood test and a cardiac catheterization

Treatment

1. The treatment of heart disease in women and in men is generally similar. Treatment consists of drugs, angioplasty and stenting or coronary artery bypass surgery. The doctor prescribes statins (drugs that lower cholesterol) for women less often than for men to prevent future heart attacks, although the benefits are comparable. Angioplasty and stenting are common treatments for heart attacks that have occurred in both men and women. Women who undergo coronary artery bypass surgery are more likely to have complications than men. Cardiac rehabilitation improves heart health

Complications

1. Even if the signs of a heart attack are subtle, the consequences can be fatal, especially if the woman does not get help right away.

2. Even if the signs of a heart attack are subtle, the consequences can be fatal, especially if the woman doesn't get help right away.