February was American Heart Month, an annual event to raise awareness about the country’s leading cause of death. As we move into March, we’d like to pinpoint what women should know about their heart health.
Gynecologist John A. Whitfield, MD, provides long-term care for women through their reproductive years and into menopause. Since heart health is such a key to wellness, Dr. Whitfield and his team feel that it’s important to remind our patients that heart disease affects women differently than men.
To help you educate yourself on these differences, we’ve prepared this month’s blog to help start the process. More than 44% of women in the United States live with some form of heart disease. It’s important to know the signs.
While both women and men share the same types of heart conditions, the symptoms aren’t always the same. Let’s look first at the major forms of heart disease.
These diseases of the heart sometimes cause symptoms that are more prevalent or unique for women.
Heart attacks show in both women and men with symptoms like:
Women are more likely to experience these additional symptoms:
Women are more likely than men to mistake heart attack symptoms for other conditions or illnesses.
Emotional stress can serve as a heart attack trigger in women, and it’s more common for women to have symptoms when they’re resting or sleeping.
The way women suffer arterial blockages in a different way too. Men tend to suffer blockages in the major arteries of the heart while women may develop small vessel heart disease, also called coronary microvascular disease.
Women are also more likely to suffer a heart attack without a severe coronary artery blockage, a condition called nonobstructive coronary artery disease.
Certain activities, conditions, and lifestyle choices increase your risk of developing heart disease. Understanding your level of risk could help you recognize some of the vague symptoms of heart attack for what they are, improving your chances for prompt treatment.
Some of the chief heart disease risk factors that are unique to women, or that affect women more include:
Your overall wellness is a priority for Dr. Whitfield and his team. Call our Fort Worth office at 817-927-2229 to book your next visit today.
