Did you know that over 250,000 women die from heart disease each year?

Scope the problem:

• Despite an overall reduction in the death rate due to cardiovascular diseases in the United States over the last several decades, the rate has increasedfor women than for men.
• Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) remains the leading causes of death for women
• 1 in 2 women will die of heart disease or stroke, compared with 1 in 25 who will die of breast cancer
• The death rate due to heart disease is higher in black women than white women
• Women have a higher death rate following a heart attack in the first year then men.
• Approximately half of all American women are not physically active

Presentation of the Disease:

• Angina (chest discomfort) is more common in women and may be their first symptom something is wrong.
• The first heart attack is more likely to be fatal in a woman. Click here for symptoms of a heart attack. 
• Women have an increase incidence of silent heart attacks and may present with other symptoms such as shortness of breath or fatigue
• Women present with heart disease later in life and may have other disease processes occurring like Diabetes

Risk Factors that cause heart disease in women:                        

Lifestyle habits that contribute to developing heart disease, which can be changed, include:

• Cigarette smoking
• High blood pressure
• Overweight
• Lack of physical exercise
• Diabetes
• Lipid abnormalities

Risk Factors that cannot be changed

• Family History
• Increasing age

For more information about heart disease, click here or call the Baptist Heart and Vascular Institute at 859-260-5500.