Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) remain the leading cause of death for women in the US, with nearly 300,00 women dying each year from heart disease and stroke. Women often present different cardiovascular symptoms than men and have unique risk factors that need special consideration. Understanding women’s unique cardiovascular needs is essential for effectively preventing, diagnosing, and treating heart diseases.
Gender Differences in Cardiovascular Disease
Prevalence and Symptoms
Studies have shown that cardiovascular diseases manifest differently in women compared to men. Women often experience subtler symptoms and are more likely to have conditions like microvascular coronary dysfunction. While chest pain is the most common heart attack symptom for box sexes, women are more likely to experience atypical symptoms like:
- Fatigue
- Nausea
- Shortness of breath
- Pain in the back, jaw, or stomach
Risk Factors Affecting Women
Certain cardiovascular risk factors — diabetes, mental stress, and autoimmune disorders — appear to affect women more than men disproportionately.
Diagnostic and Treatment Challenges
Diagnostic Disparities
Historically, cardiovascular research has focused more on men, leading to a gender gap in understanding and diagnosing heart diseases in women. There’s a need for more gender-specific research and diagnostic criteria to identify and treat CVD in women accurately.
Treatment Considerations
Treatment approaches for heart disease often need to be tailored for women. For example, they may respond differently to certain medications and have a higher risk of complications from procedures like angioplasty.
Prevention and Lifestyle Modification
Implementing preventive strategies is imperative to effectively reduce the incidence of CVD in women. These include maintaining a heart-healthy lifestyle, which encompasses a balanced diet rich in nutrients, consistent physical activity, effective stress management techniques, and avoiding tobacco and excessive alcohol consumption.
Help Us Reduce Risks and Save Lives
The Women’s Breast & Heart Initiative is deeply committed to community outreach and education, striving to arm everyone with vital information and tools to combat breast cancer and heart diseases.
Lend a hand as a volunteer, participate in our myriad events, or join our extensive list of benevolent supporters. You can even show your allegiance more tangibly with our bespoke Florida license plate! College professors can play a vital role in propelling disease prevention and early detection education. Innovative initiatives, like the Virtual Advocate Program (VAP), provide a college curriculum that empowers professors with a flexible program that can be offered as service learning or as extra credit, extending health education beyond traditional boundaries.
