act quickly at the first warning sign of cardiovascular disease. Getting the appropriate care as soon as possible can prevent further damage.
The problem, however, is that many women put their own health on the back burner or may shrug off the symptoms. “Some women patients neglect their own health,” says Dr. Andrea Vitello, a cardiologist at Baptist Health’s Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute. “They’re always doing for others.”
This is precisely why Dr. Vitello and her colleagues are keen on educating women and their physicians on the risk factors, how to prevent cardiovascular disease and how to get proper treatment.
Coronary artery disease (CAD)
This is a condition in which plaque blocks the arteries in your heart leading to the narrowing of those heart vessels and diminishing the blood flow the heart needs. CAD can weaken the heart muscle over time, leading to heart failure. Although CAD has a strong genetic component, many young women with a family history of it are unaware of how dangerous it can be.
“They’re not aware they have certain risk factors,” says Dr. Lucia Blanchard, a cardiologist with Broward Health. “So, they can’t take the steps early on to limit the damage.”
Worse outcomes for women
Another challenge women face is that even if they control their risk factors and other health outcomes, they still fare worse than men. For example, women with diabetes fare worse than men who have already had a heart attack and female smokers are more likely to have a heart attack than men who smoke.
Additionally, menopause and age also have an effect on women’s heart health. After 55, women have an increased risk of developing heart disease.
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High blood pressure during pregnancy
For younger women, high blood pressure during pregnancy can be problematic — even fatal. A study found that the number of mothers who died of high blood pressure during pregnancy was up to 15-fold between 1979 and 2018. According to researchers, about 75% of these maternal deaths were preventable.
Even those who survive gestational hypertension aren’t in the woods. These women are at risk of having serious heart issues later in life. In fact, some women have developed chronic hypertension as early as three years after pregnancy.
High blood pressure, in general, is especially dangerous because people who suffer from it don’t always display obvious symptoms. It is one of the most common risk factors for heart disease, however, only 1 in 4 women with hypertension are adequately treated, according to studies.