Porter Regional Hospital: Women’s Heart Attack Symptoms can be Different from Men’s

Kommenini headshotWritten By Cardiologist Maya Kommineni, M.D.

The simple fact is that women ARE different than men and the same applies when it comes to the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease. Compared to men, women may experience different symptoms of heart disease, which may often go unnoticed or undiagnosed until she has a heart attack.

Despite our advances in medicine, heart disease is still the leading killer of women in the United States. The reality is that more women die from heart disease than all cancers combined. How can this be? Many myths remain regarding women and heart disease. Don’t believe that chest pain and heart attacks only happen in men, that women are protected from heart disease before menopause, or that a woman is just tired, stressed, or depressed. The truth is that heart disease, specifically heart attacks, happen to women of all ages, with vague symptoms, such as increased fatigue, heartburn, nausea or arm pain.

Risk factors, such as smoking, inactivity, obesity, and excessive alcohol can present a greater risk to women than to men. Women are also more likely to delay seeking emergency care for symptoms of a heart attack, such as pain and dizziness. Because a woman’s heart attack may not look like the ‘Hollywood heart attack’ of sudden chest pain followed by collapse, she may delay medical care.

Unfortunately, many women have trouble recognizing that they are having symptoms of a heart attack until it is too late, which is why I believe in empowering women with the knowledge of early warning signs for heart disease. Together, with my patients, male or female, we develop a preventive cardiovascular health plan designed to prevent a heart attack and the long-term consequences of untreated heart problems.

The first step is for a patient to take action by knowing his or her family history for heart disease, plus personal risk factors, then seeking a health care professional to guide them toward a healthy and happy heart.