Health News / January 2008
No 1 Health Risk for Women
According to Katherine Hobson in the October 18, 2007, issue of U.S. News and World Report, “Most women simply don’t think much about heart disease. They’re much more likely to worry about breast cancer, though cardiovascular disease (which includes high blood pressure and stroke) kills almost twice as many American women as all cancers put together. Nearly 1 in 2 will develop it in her lifetime, and 1 in 3 will die from it. Generally, trouble strikes women in their 60s, about a decade later than men, possibly because naturally protective estrogen levels decline. But a lower risk of heart disease at a younger age doesn’t mean women in their 40’s and 50’s don’t have to worry, especially if they’re getting by on fast food and a once-a-month trip to the gym. Indeed, doctors are particularly interested in identifying and preventing disaster in the vast group of women who are at intermediate risk—they have a couple of bad habits and a family history—and are most likely unaware of the consequences. It’s in this group that fully 70 percent of heart attacks occur.”
“Two thirds of women who die of heart disease have unrecognized symptoms”, says Lori Mosca, Director of Preventive Cardiology at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. She also chaired of the committee that developed the most recent American Heart Association guidelines for prevention in women. While most women having a heart attack will experience the hallmark chest pressure, some have symptoms uncommon in men: excess sweating, extreme fatigue, nausea, jaw pain, or even headache. And the standard male template of danger signals may overlook women headed for a stroke, or those whose major heart vessels are clear but who have “coronary microvascular syndrome,” dangerous narrowing of the tiniest arteries.”
Hobson continued, “Women who come in with symptoms will be tested—anything from an EKG to look for abnormal heart rhythms to a coronary angiogram, which threads a catheter into the blood vessels to search for blockages. If the angiogram comes up clear, you might want to ask your doctor if tests for microvascular syndrome are available locally.”
“If you feel fine, your course of action depends on your individual risk. Women at high risk include those who have diabetes or chronic kidney disease and those with greater than a 20 percent chance of heart problems in the next decade as measured by the Framingham risk score; which takes into account such factors as smoking habits, cholesterol levels, and blood pressure. A woman in her 50’s should have a good medical history done, a lab assessment, a physical, and a family history”, says Mosca. A fasting cholesterol profile will measure your LDL (“bad” cholesterol), HDL (“good” cholesterol), and triglycerides; a fasting blood sugar test, your risk of diabetes.
Hobson wrote, “The prescription is less clear for the group in the gray area. Like everyone else, they should adopt heart-healthy habits, pronto. ‘You can never underestimate the effects of diet and exercise,’ says Paul Ridker, director of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. But will the potential benefit of adding medication outweigh the potential harm from side effects? The search is on for more sensitive ways to assess risk status in this group.
Earlier this year, Ridker and his colleagues reported that adding family history and blood levels of C-reactive protein (a marker of inflammation that rises when arteries are blocked) to the factors included in the Framingham score could move many women up or down a notch. The newer test, dubbed the Reynolds Risk Score, can also project your risk out further than a decade. Some doctors now use CRP and the new score; others aren’t convinced that they add any important information.”
Copyright © 2001-2009 A Woman's View. All rights reserved.
Top • Home • Subscribe • Advertise • Submit • Distribution • Contact
Support Our Advertisers • Organization Resources • Women Owned Business
Organization Resource List • Women Owned Businesses • Support Our Advertisers
Maintained by TEABROOKE
Website Design | SEO | Social Media Consulting
Related Sites | XMLSiteMap | Web Portal
Landing Zone SEO - Website | Search | Usability | Results | Goodness
Send an Email About This Article