Women’s Wellness: Understand Symptoms And Risk Factors For Heart Attack

From Mayo Clinic News Network Mayo Clinic News Network

WWR Article Summary (tl;dr) Women can take steps to understand their unique symptoms of heart disease and begin to reduce their risk of an attack.

Mayo Clinic News Network



The most common heart attack symptom in women is some type of pain, pressure or discomfort in the chest. But it is not always severe or even the most prominent symptom, particularly in women. And, sometimes, women may have a heart attack without chest pain. Women are more likely than men to have heart attack symptoms unrelated to chest pain, such as: Neck, jaw, shoulder, upper back or abdominal discomfort Shortness of breath Pain in one or both arms Nausea or vomiting Sweating Lightheadedness or dizziness Unusual fatigue


Women may describe chest pain as pressure or a tightness. This may be because women tend to have blockages not only in their main arteries but also in the smaller arteries that supply blood to the heart, a condition called small vessel heart disease or coronary microvascular disease.



Although several traditional risk factors for coronary artery disease, such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and obesity, affect women and men, other factors may play a bigger role in the development of heart disease in women. For example, risk factors may include:






Broken heart syndrome. This condition, often brought on by stressful situations that can cause severe, but usually temporary, heart muscle failure, occurs more commonly in women after menopause. This condition may also be called takotsubo cardiomyopathy, apical ballooning syndrome or stress cardiomyopathy.

Pregnancy complications. High blood pressure or diabetes during pregnancy can increase women's long-term risk of high blood pressure and diabetes and increase the risk of development of heart disease in the mothers. Some research has found that if you had pregnancy complications such as high blood pressure or diabetes your children may also have an increased risk of heart disease in the future.

Women with inflammatory diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus, may also have a higher risk of heart disease. Research is ongoing in other heart disease risk factors in women. Is heart disease something only older women should worry about? No. Women of all ages should take heart disease seriously. Women under the age of 65, and especially those with a family history of heart disease, need to pay close attention to heart disease risk factors.

What can women do to reduce their risk of heart disease? Women can make several lifestyle changes to reduce the risk of heart disease, including:

Quit or don't start smoking. Exercise regularly. Maintain a healthy weight. Eat a healthy diet that includes whole grains, a variety of fruits and vegetables, low-fat or fat-free dairy products, and lean meats. Avoid saturated or trans fat, added sugars, and high amounts of salt.

Women also need to take prescribed medications appropriately, such as blood pressure medications, blood thinners and aspirin. And they'll need to better manage other conditions that are risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes. ___ This article was written by Mayo Clinic Staff and can be found, with other health and medical information, on mayoclinic.org.

Related News

Leave a Reply
