Women and Heart Attacks: Are They More Likely to Die from One?

Many people think of heart disease as being a "man's disease". It's true that women have a lower risk of heart disease and heart attack before menopause, but they catch up to men once they enter the postmenopausal years. Heart disease and heart attack is still the number one killer of women in this country. There's also the perception that heart attacks in women are "milder" than they are in men. Do women have a better heart attack prognosis than men do?

Heart Attacks in Women: Are They Less Likely to Die Than Men?

Women enjoy some protection against heart attacks before they go through menopause, but when they do have a heart attack, they have a higher risk of dying. According to research, the difference in mortality is related to the fact that women are usually older and more likely to have poor health when they have a heart attack compared to men who have them on average ten years earlier than women. Other medical conditions such as lung disease or diabetes make surviving a heart attack more challenging, which means heart attack prognosis in women is often poorer.

Women may be less likely to be diagnosed with a heart attack in a timely manner too, since they don't always have the classic symptoms of crush pain and shortness of breath. Their symptoms can be as vague as back pain, fatigue, nausea and mild shortness of breath. Some doctors attribute these symptoms to other causes and miss the diagnosis entirely - with disastrous consequences.

Some women delay seeking treatment for a heart attack, because they believe their doctor will think they're overreacting since they don't have the classic symptom of "an elephant standing on their chest". This delay can be life-threatening.

Women and Heart Attacks: The Bottom Line?

Heart attack prognosis in women is not as good as it is in men. All women should be aware of the signs and symptoms of heart attack, and the fact that they may not have classic symptoms of chest pain and shortness of breath. When in doubt, get medical attention. No one will laugh if it turns out to be indigestion.

References:

Circulation. 2007;115.

Medpage Today. "Age and Illness Cited for Women's Higher MI Death Rate"

Merck Manual. Eighteenth edition. 2006.