|
Angina & Heart Disease in Women
While traditionally many women consider Heart Disease to be chiefly an ailment in men, coronary heart disease (CAD) is actually the number one cause of death among women, surpassing cancer.
Heart disease may present later in life in women and the symptoms may not be the 'classical' symptoms we recognize as typical angina, including crushing chest pain or pain radiating to the left arm.
These more easily recognized angina symptoms of CAD may occur in women, but women may also experience more subtle symptoms that may be overlooked by both the patient or health care provider.
Some symptoms of heart disease in women include, among others:
Chest tightness, ache, or pressure.
"Atypical cardiac pain" of back ache, neck or jaw pain
Nausea, vomiting, indigestion
Fatigues or weakness
Dizziness or lightheadness.
Anxiety or a sense of doom
There are some recognized risk factors for heart disease in women.
The absence of these risk factors does not exclude heart disease, but their presence raises the odds of CAD in women:
Hereditary factors including a family history of heart disease
Increasing age -the incidence of heart disease in women
goes up with age, especially after menopause
Smoking history (some might include a history of exposure to passive smoke)
History Hypertension (high blood pressure)
History of Diabetes
(diabetic patients may be more prone to 'silent' heart attacks in which no pain is experienced).
Elevated abnormal lipids such as elevated LDL, cholesterol and triglycerides.
Race -African American women are at increased risk
Obesity
Sedentary lifestyle
Excessive alcohol ingestion
Drug use, including cocaine
Hormonal history
Stress
Depression
Women with risk factors or are uncertain if their symptoms represent heart disease should consult their health care providers. If you are uncertain as to whether your symptoms represent a heart attack, call 911.
More on Heart Disease Angina and Coronary Artery Disease in Women
|
|
Niccoli G, Sgueglia GA, Cosentino N, Piro M, Toma A, Cataneo L, Fracassi F, Porto I, Leone AM, Burzotta F, Trani C, Crea F.
Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy.
Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil. 2011 Aug 12
|
-
The risk of developing heart failure was lower for postmenopausal women who frequently ate baked or broiled fish, but higher for those who ate more fried fish.
-
Dark fish such as salmon was healthier for the heart than tuna or white fish such as sole.
-
Eating fried fish one or more times per week was associated with a 48 percent higher risk of heart failure in postmenopausal women compared to those who ate it infrequently.
|
|
BALTIMORE (May 5, 2011) — An innovative program that screens women for heart disease in an unlikely place – the gynecologist’s office – has found that fewer than one out of three women is aware of all of her cardiovascular risk factors, according to a study presented today at the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) 2011 Scientific Sessions.
|
Study finds women who suffer from hot flashes when they begin menopause are at lower risk for cardiovascular events
CHICAGO, Feb. 24, 2011/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --You are enjoying a night out with friends when it starts; first you feel flush, then a sensation of warmth crawls down your body. Soon you begin perspiring and you feel as if everyone around you can tell what is happening – another hot flash. An estimated three out of four women experience hot flashes associated with menopause and nearly all would agree they are a nuisance, but experts say there could be an upside to having hot flashes. New research released today in the online edition of the journal Menopause suggests that women who suffer from hot flashes and night sweats may be at lower risk for cardiovascular disease, stroke and death.
|
American Heart Association Rapid Access Journal Report
-
Middle-aged women worldwide lowering their blood pressure could prevent a substantial amount of cardiovascular disease.
-
High systolic blood pressure is the most powerful predictor of heart disease in these women, followed by high cholesterol and smoking.
-
Diagnosing and treating high blood pressure in midlife could improve their health and quality of life.
|
|
Balkin DM, Cohen LS.
Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
|
Am J Cardiol. 2010 Dec 1;106(11):1580-7.
Wenger NK, Mischke JM, Schroeder R, Schroeder K, Collins P, Grady D, Kornitzer M, Mosca L, Barrett-Connor E.
Department of Medicine (Cardiology), Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia.
|
Heart Rhythm. 2010 Oct;7(10):1374-80.
Chiuve SE, Rimm EB, Mukamal KJ, Rexrode KM, Stampfer MJ, Manson JE, Albert CM.
Center for Arrhythmia Prevention, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. schiuve@hsph.harvard.edu
Comment in:
-
Heart Rhythm. 2010 Oct;7(10):1381-2.
|
CJEM. 2010 Sep;12(5):405-13.
Hesse EP, Perry JJ, Calder LA, Thiruganasambandamoorthy V, Roger VL, Wells GA, Stiell IG.
Department of Emergency Medicine, Division of Emergency Medicine Research, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, Minnesota
|
Circulation. 2010 Aug 16.
Bernstein AM, et al
Departments of Nutrition.
|
|
Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 Jul;20(6):426-435.
Leuzzi C, Modena MG.
Department of Cardiology, University Hospital of Modena, Modena, Italy. |
| |
| |
Angina in women.
Curr Cardiol Rep. 2010 Jul;12(4):307-14
Wenger NK.
Emory University School of Medicine, 49 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA. nwenger@emory.edu |
J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2010 Jul 14.
Carpiuc KT, et al
1 Department of Family and Preventive Medicine
University of California , San Diego, La Jolla, California. |
|
Featured Angina| Acute Coronary Syndrome and Heart Disease Interviews
|
Highlights of Article by Dr. Erik Hess et of Mayo Clinic ;CIRCOUTCOMES 2012
|
-
Chest pain is the 2nd most common reason patients come to EDs across the United States
-
Initial testing – including information obtained from the history, physical exam, electrocardiogram, and cardiac troponin – identifies > 98% of heart attacks
-
To avoid missing a diagnosis of heart attack or pre-heart attack symptoms, emergency physicians often admit patients to observation units or to the hospital for extensive diagnostic testing, including stress testing
-
This results in false positive test results, unnecessary exposure to radiation, and unnecessary downstream procedures such as stent placement in arteries of the heart
-
Decision aids are evidence-based tools designed to educate and engage patients in decisions regarding their care
-
We hypothesized that patients who were educated regarding their future risk for a heart attack and engaged in the decision of whether to be admitted to the observation unit for stress testing or to follow-up with a Mayo Clinic heart doctor in the next 72 hours would have greater knowledge about their short-term risk for heart attack, be more aware of the management options, and choose less intensive approaches to evaluation
-
We randomly assigned 204 patients who came to the ED with chest pain and were being considered for observation unit admission to the decision aid or to usual care
-
Decision aid patients:
-
Had greater knowledge regarding their short-term risk for a heart attack
-
Less frequently decided to be admitted to the observation unit for stress testing
-
Had 4 times greater engagement in the decision making process
-
Had no adverse events within 30 days of the ED visit
-
Take home points
-
Patients want to be educated and engaged in decisions regarding their care
-
Once properly informed and engaged in treatment decisions, patients often choose less intensive treatment options
-
Integrated health systems like the Mayo Clinic in which physicians collaboratively work together to provide ER patients ready access to outpatient follow-up have potential to improve the value of Emergency care
|
|
|
|
Glucose, Insulin and Potassium (“GIK”) TO MINIMIZE IMPACT OF HEART ATTACKS BEFORE PATIENTS GET TO THE HOSPITAL
Study puts life-saving drugs in the hands of paramedics, decreasing rate of cardiac arrest and death from heart attacks
CHICAGO (March 27, 2012) — Paramedics can potentially reduce someone’s chances of having a cardiac arrest or dying by 50 percent by immediately administering a mixture of glucose, insulin and potassium (“GIK”) to people having a heart attack, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology’s 61st Annual Scientific Session. The Scientific Session, the premier cardiovascular medical meeting, brings cardiovascular professionals together to further advances in the field.
The study showed that patients who received GIK immediately after being diagnosed with acute coronary syndrome — which indicates a possible heart attack is either in progress or on the way — were 50 percent less likely to have cardiac arrest (a condition in which the heart suddenly stops beating) or die than those who received a placebo, although the treatment did not prevent the heart attack from occurring. The reduction in in-hospital cardiac arrest or death was a “secondary endpoint”, so statistically was not definitive, but was consistent with how GIK seems to work in experimental models of heart attack.
The effect was also present for patients with ST-elevation heart attacks, which require immediate treatment. For those patients, immediate GIK was associated with a 60 percent reduction in in-hospital cardiac arrest or death.
“When started immediately in the home or on the way to the hospital — even before the diagnosis is completely established — GIK appears not completely prevent any heart attack from occurring, but appeared in this trial to reduce the size of heart attacks and to reduce by half the risk of having a cardiac arrest or dying,” said Harry P. Selker, MD, MSPH, executive director of the Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies at Tufts Medical Center, who led the study with Joni Beshansky, RN, MPH, co-principal investigator and project director. “Acute coronary syndromes represent the largest cause of death in this country. GIK is a very inexpensive treatment that appears to have promise in reducing those deaths and morbidity.”
The cost of the treatment is about $50.
“Because the trial is the first to show GIK could be effective when used by paramedics in real-world community settings, it could have important implications for the treatment of heart attacks,” Dr. Selker said. Previous clinical trials have shown no consistent effect, likely because the GIK was given too late to help. This study, the “IMMEDIATE Trial,” was the first to test the effectiveness of administering GIK at the very first signs of a threatening heart attack, in the community, rather than waiting hours until the diagnosis was well-established at a hospital, as done in previous clinical trials.
“We wanted to do something that is effective and can be used anywhere,” said Dr. Selker. “We’ve done a lot of studies of acute cardiac care in emergency departments and hospitals, but more people die of heart attacks outside the hospital than inside the hospital. Hundreds of thousands of people per year are dying out in the community; we wanted to direct our attention to those patients.”
The researchers trained paramedics in 36 Emergency Medical Services systems in 13 cities across the country to administer GIK after determining that a patient was likely having a threatened or already established heart attack using electrocardiograph-based ACI-TIPI (acute cardiac ischemia time-insensitive predictive instrument) and thrombolytic predictive instrument decision support that prints patient-specific predictions on the top of an electrocardiogram. The paramedics used these predictions to decide if a patient would likely benefit from treatment. There were 911 patients randomized to receive either the GIK treatment or a placebo.
Administering GIK immediately also reduced the severity of the damage to the heart tissue from the heart attack. On average, 2 percent of the heart tissue was destroyed by the heart attack in people receiving GIK, compared with 10 percent in those who received the placebo. Although a significant proportion of suspected heart attacks are later determined to be false alarms (23 percent in this study), administering GIK does not appear to cause any harmful effects in such patients.
The research team will follow up with study participants at six and 12 months to evaluate the longer-term benefit of the GIK treatment.
This study was funded by the NIH’s National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
|
|
Keywords and tags:
Angina, atypical angina, heart disease,chest pain, angina pectoris, chest pains, cardiology ,ivabradine for chronic angina, emergency room evaluation of chest pain, heart attacks, cardiac syndrome X,cpr, heart disease in women, cholesterol, lipids, heart medications, aspirin, cardiologists, ekg, ecg, echocardiology, heart surgery, bypass surgery, stents, spiral CTs, 64 slice CTs, chest pain, heart risk factors, cardiology news, angina.com, CRP, C Reactive Protein, troponins, troponin I, troponin T, Prinzmetal's angina, nitrates, angina treatment, JUPITER study, Crestor, CHF, congestive heart failure, Avandia, myeloperoxidase, MPO, biomarkers, AEDs, cardiac defibrillators, cardiac CTs, coronary 64 slice scanners,128 slice CT, 256 Cat Scan, Vitamin D and heart disease, Get with the Program -Coronary Artery Disease updates, Acute Coronary Syndrome, stress tests, thallium stress test, PCI, angioplasty, CABG, coronary artery bypass surgery, calcium
Angina | Heart Disease Resourses
| Chest Pain
Amazon.com 's Editorial Reviews
Angina: New Ways to Treat
Chronic Chest Pain
Part of the award winning public television series Healthy head
/Healthy Mind. It's one of the scariest medical symptoms for people who are generally healthy: a tightening, painful feeling in the chest known as Angina. In some cases this chest pain can be a serious warning that requires immediate treatment. But for the millions of people with chronic, stable angina the discomfort is something that can be readily managed with a variety of treatments. In this program we take a look at what generally causes angina, what can be done to prevent it and how it can be effectively treated with lifestyle changes, innovative drug therapies and medical procedures.
|
Amazon.com Editorial Review:
Philips HeartStart Home Defibrillator (AED)
Be prepared for the unexpected.
When sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) strikes, the electrical system of the heart short circuits, causing the heart to quiver rather than pump in a normal rhythm. It typically results in the abnormal heart rhythm know as ventricular fibrillation (VF). It usually happens without warning and the majority of people have no previously recognized symptoms of heart disease. And it most often happens at home. For the best chance of survival from SCA caused by VF, a defibrillator should be used within 5 minutes. Yet, less than 1 in 20 people survive largely because a defibrillator does not arrive in time.
Just as seat belts or airbags do not save every life in a traffic accident, a defibrillator will not save every person who suffers a sudden cardiac arrest. Yet many lives could be saved if more people could be reached more quickly.
|
|
Angina.com Tag Cloud | Angina Keywords
|
**************************************
|
