Women and
Heart Attack
It is
a myth that heart disease is a man's disease.
In fact, one in 14 women aged 45 to 64 has heart
disease. One in six women over the age of 65 has
heart disease. Currently, 6 million women have
heart disease, states the National Heart, Lung,
and Blood Institute of the National Institutes
of Health (NIH). Consider the following facts
about cardiovascular disease in women:
- Coronary heart disease
is the single largest cause of death for females
in the United States.
- Almost 16 percent of
girls ages six to 19 are overweight, which is
a risk factor for heart disease. About 25
percent of girls in grades nine through 12 report
using tobacco, which is a risk factor for heart
disease.
- At menopause, a woman's
heart disease risk starts to increase significantly.
Each year, about 88,000 women ages 45 to 64
have a heart attack. Beginning at age 50, more
women than men have elevated cholesterol.
- Each year, about 372,000
women age 65 and older have a heart attack.
About 21 million women age 60 and older
have high blood pressure. The average age for
women to have a first heart attack is about
70, and women are more likely than men to die
within a few weeks of a heart attack.
- About 35 percent of
women who have had a heart attack will have
another within six years.
A heart
attack, or myocardial infarction, occurs when
one of more regions of the heart muscle experience
a severe or prolonged decrease in oxygen supply
caused by blocked blood flow to the heart muscle.
The
blockage is often a result of atherosclerosis
- a buildup of plaque, known as cholesterol, other
fatty substances, and a blood clot. Plaque inhibits
and obstructs the flow of blood and oxygen to
the heart, thus reducing the flow to the rest
of the body.
If the
blood and oxygen supply is cut off severely or
for a long period of time, muscle cells of the
heart suffer severe and devastating damage and
die. The result is damage or death to the area
of the heart that became affected by reduced blood
supply.
There
are two types of risk factors for heart attack,
including the following:
|
Inherited (or
genetic): |
Acquired: |
| Inherited
or genetic risk factors are risk factors
you are born with that cannot be changed,
but can be improved with medical management
and lifestyle changes. |
Acquired
risk factors are caused by activities that
we choose to include in our lives that can
be managed through lifestyle changes and
clinical care. |
- women with inherited
hypertension - high blood pressure
- women with inherited
low levels of HDL (high-density lipoproteins),
triglycerides, or high levels of LDL (low-density
lipoprotein) blood cholesterol
- women with a family
history of heart disease (especially with onset
before age 55)
- aging women
- women with type 1 diabetes
- women, after the onset
of menopause - generally, men are at risk at
an earlier age than women, but after the onset
of menopause, women are equally at risk.
- women with acquired
hypertension - high blood pressure
- women with acquired
low levels of HDL (high-density lipoproteins),
triglycerides, or high levels of LDL (low-density
lipoprotein) blood cholesterol
- cigarette smokers
- women who are under
a lot of stress
- women who lead a sedentary
lifestyle
- women overweight by
30 percent or more
- women who eat
a diet high in saturated fat
- women with Type
II diabetes
A heart
attack can happen to anyone - it is only when
we take the time to learn which of the risk factors
apply to us, specifically, can we then take steps
to eliminate or reduce them.
Managing
your risks for a heart attack begins with:
- examining which of
the risk factors apply to you, and then taking
steps to eliminate or reduce them.
- becoming aware of conditions
like hypertension or abnormal cholesterol levels,
which may be "silent killers."
- modifying risk factors
that are acquired (not inherited) through lifestyle
changes. Consult your physician as the first
step in starting right away to make these changes.
- consulting your physician
soon to determine if you have risk factors that
are genetic or inherited and cannot be changed,
but can be managed medically and through lifestyle
changes.
The
following are the most common symptoms of a heart
attack. However, each individual may experience
symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:
Indigestion
Indigestion,
also known as upset stomach or dyspepsia, is
a painful or burning feeling in the upper abdomen
that may be accompanied by the following: nausea;
abdominal bloating; belching; vomiting; severe
pain in the upper right abdomen; discomfort
unrelated to eating; and indigestion accompanied
by shortness of breath, sweating, or pain radiating
to the jaw, neck, or arm
The symptoms of indigestion may resemble other
medical conditions, such as chest pain . Always
consult your physician for a diagnosis.
- severe pressure, fullness,
squeezing, pain and/or discomfort in the center
of the chest that lasts for more than a few
minutes
- pain or discomfort
that spreads to the shoulders, neck, arms, or
jaw
- chest pain that increases
in intensity
- chest pain that is
not relieved by rest or by taking cardiac prescription
medication
- chest pain that occurs
with any/all of the following (additional) symptoms:
- sweating, cool, clammy
skin, and/or paleness
- shortness of breath
- nausea or vomiting
- dizziness or fainting
- unexplained weakness
or fatigue
- rapid or irregular
pulse
Although
chest pain is the key warning sign of a heart
attack, it may be confused with indigestion, pleurisy,
pneumonia, or other disorders.
The
symptoms of a heart attack may resemble other
medical conditions or problems. Always consult
your physician for a diagnosis.
If you
or someone you know exhibits any of the above
warning signs, act immediately. Call 911, or your
local emergency number.
The
goal of treatment for a heart attack is to relieve
pain, preserve the heart muscle function, and
prevent death.
Treatment
in the emergency department may include:
- intravenous therapy
- continuous monitoring
of the heart and vital signs
- oxygen therapy (to
improve oxygenation to the damaged heart muscle)
- pain medication (by
decreasing pain, the workload of the heart decreases,
thus the oxygen demand of the heart decreases)
- cardiac medication
(to promote blood flow to the heart, prevent
blood clotting, improve the blood supply, prevent
arrhythmias, and decrease heart rate and blood
pressure)
- thrombolytic therapy
(intravenous infusion of a medication which
dissolves the blockage, thus restoring blood
flow)
Once
the condition has been diagnosed and the patient
stabilized, additional procedures to restore coronary
blood flow may be utilized, including the following:
- coronary angioplasty
With this procedure, a catheter is used to create
a larger opening in the vessel to increase blood
flow. Although angioplasty is performed in other
blood vessels, percutaneous transluminal coronary
angioplasty (PTCA) refers to angioplasty in
the coronary arteries to permit more blood flow
into the heart. There are several types of PTCA
procedures, including the following:
- balloon angioplasty
- a small balloon is inflated
inside the blocked artery to open the blocked
area.
- atherectomy -
the blocked area inside the artery is "shaved"
away by a tiny device on the end of a catheter.
- laser angioplasty
- a laser used to "vaporize"
the blockage in the artery.
- coronary artery
stent - a tiny coil is expanded
inside the blocked artery to open the blocked
area and is left in place to keep the artery
open.
- coronary artery bypass
Most commonly referred to as simply "bypass
surgery," this surgery is often performed in
people who have angina (chest pain) and coronary
artery disease (where plaque has built up in
the arteries). During the surgery, a bypass
is created by grafting a piece of a vein above
and below the blocked area of a coronary artery,
enabling blood to flow around the obstruction.
Veins are usually taken from the leg, but arteries
from the chest may also be used to create a
bypass graft.
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