One Out of Two

If you’re a woman, those are your chances of dying from heart disease or stroke. Your odds of dying from breast cancer are one in 27.

Dr. Stephanie Coulter strongly emphasizes that women seek a second opinion if their symptoms or concerns are dismissed by a physician.

Cardiovascular diseases affect more women than men, and heart attacks are generally more severe in women than in men. Failing to recognize and respond to symptoms of a heart attack may be part of the reason women experience a greater proportion of sudden cardiac deaths than men. That’s mostly due to misperceptions by women and their doctors.

“Too often, women’s heart disease is ignored by primary care physicians, by emergency room staff and by women themselves,” says cardiologist Stephanie Coulter, M.D. “Half of all women die of a cardiovascular condition, including heart attack, stroke, peripheral vascular disease and heart failure. When physicians fail to listen to women who suspect their symptoms are cardiac related, women should seek a second opinion before it’s too late.”

Although the average age at which women experience heart problems tends to be later than men, and although the signs and symptoms of women’s heart problems tend to be different than those of men, the factors for heart disease are the same. The top five risks are family history, diabetes, smoking, high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

“Women can reduce their risk by leading a healthy lifestyle. Eating a healthy diet, exercising and avoiding smoking can dramatically reduce their risk. If they have high blood pressure, lowering their blood pressure and controlling their cholesterol can dramatically reduce their risk,” says Roberta Bogaev, M.D., Medical Director of Heart Failure and Transplant. 

By avoiding heart attacks and recognizing the symptoms early, patients can reduce their risk of heart muscle damage.

“Many times women have atypical symptoms. Instead of the typical chest pain, symptoms can present as jaw pain, arm pain or simply shortness of breath or nausea. Even more alarming, four out of five physicians are unaware that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among women” says Dr. Bogaev.

Updated March 2008